Netflix has announced that its long-threatened password-sharing crackdown is about to begin.
The streaming giant, which announced lower-than-expected subscribers in the first three months of the year, is rolling out a series of initiatives to grow revenue and retain subscribers.
The company has trialled the password-sharing crackdown, but it has not yet rolled it out in the UK.
The tightening of rules will begin in the U.S. and other countries this quarter (April-June), the company said.
In a blog post, the company also announced the end of its DVD-by-mail business — the foundation of its business 25 years ago. The final disc will be released on September 29th.
Netflix, considered the streaming industry leader, added 1.75 million subscribers in the first quarter of 2023. But the increase was lower than analysts’ estimate of 2.06 million new users.
Total subscribers now total 232.5 million, up 4.9% from the last three months of 2022.
A year ago, Netflix lost 200,000 subscribers — its first drop in subscribers in more than a decade.
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It has asked customers in Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain to pay extra if they share passwords with family or friends who live in different houses, and it said it was pleased with the results.
The company’s performance statement said: “We’ve learned more with each rollout, and we’ve incorporated the latest knowledge, which we believe will lead to better results.
“In order to implement these changes, we are delaying the broad launch from the end of Q1 to Q2.
“We are planning a broad rollout [of the password sharing crackdown]including in the U.S., in the second quarter.
“We are pleased with the recent rollout of paid sharing, although we could have rolled it out broadly in the first quarter [the first three months of 2023], we identified an opportunity to improve the member experience. “
The benefits of the new measures were felt as revenue rose to $8.162 billion, as analysts expected.
Across the streaming industry, company growth has slowed as competition has intensified in recent years.