A phone and TV Screen both show the netflix logo. (Olivieir DOULIERY AFP via Getty Images/TNS
By Victor Mays, Entertainment Editor
Netflix announced that it will be cracking down on password sharing at the end of March for the United States. It used to be that if one person paid for the account they could share their password with anyone they wanted for free. This will no longer be the case.
Now your Netflix account is confined to one primary household. This means the account must be linked to one designated Wi-Fi network. For those who are in college and pay for a Netflix account used at home and school, do not worry because there is a way to watch tv shows and movies in both locations.
Subscription holders can pay an extra fee to have up to two people who are not in your set primary household access to the account. When logging onto the account on an unauthorized device, Netflix will send an email with a four-digit code to the owner of the account to verify the device.
The verification will allow the user to use Netflix for 31 days before having to re-verify the account or return to the primary household. The days of sharing account passwords with anyone for free are over.
The crackdown on password sharing goes against Netflix’s initial 2017 tweet that said “Love is sharing a password.” Many have taken to Twitter to discuss their disdain and some post funny memes pointing out the irony of the statement or how the tweet didn’t age well.
“Netflix is shooting themselves in the foot. They are completely out of touch with this generation,” sophomore Madison Schwenneker said.
Some news outlets are reporting that this crackdown on password sharing might be the right thing to do. USA Today said that while people like to get things free, it can be unsustainable to do so.
“I’m personally not affected by this, so I don’t care. I think you should be paying for your own account,” student Caleb Simpson said.
The discourse surrounding password sharing has circulated around multiple social media platforms with StopNetflix hashtags and skits being made on different platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
This new direction has caused many students and parents to worry about charges for sharing a password. Some are even considering canceling their subscription to the platform.
“This is crazy. While trying to stop people from sharing a password might be good financially, I think this is an absurd move by Netflix. If I am paying for the service, I should be able to share my password with whoever I want,” senior Alaqua Jacobs said.