American subscription-based streaming service, Netflix has officially begun a crackdown on users who share passwords in the United States.
Netflix previously turned a blind eye to password sharing because it was fueling growth.
The company through an email posted on its blog on Tuesday said it is now sending out emails to all US subscribers who share passwords with people outside their household, as part of a long-planned move to limit password sharing.
“Your Netflix account is for you and the people you live with your household,” the email reads.
To share an account with someone outside a household, a user can transfer a profile to a new membership that they pay for or else add an extra member to their account for an additional $7.99 monthly fee.
However, recently, it said that it was going to crack down on password sharing because it hurts its bottom line. It has previously been estimated that more than 100 million households worldwide share an account.
Netflix warned that it would be tightening its guidelines on password sharing in a push to boost revenue and subscriber numbers, soon after the company began seeing growth stagnate.
Originally, Netflix was expected to roll out its crackdown on people who borrow other accounts to create their own profiles late in the first quarter, but alerted investors and customers during an earnings call last month that it was pushing the move until the second quarter.
The streamer has said more than 100 million households share accounts, which is about 43% of its global user base which has affected its ability to invest in new content.
Earlier this year, Netflix outlined password-sharing guidance in four other countries: New Zealand, Canada, Portugal and Spain. Netflix said it would ask members in those countries to set a “primary location” for their accounts, and allow users to establish two sub-accounts for those who don’t live in their home base for extra fees.
In addition to its crackdown on password sharing, Netflix also recently introduced a cheaper, ad-supported tier in an effort to boost revenue. Both measures have come in response shortly after Netflix reported its first subscriber loss in more than a decade in early 2022.
Media companies across the board have been looking for ways to make their streaming plays profitable, leaning on methods such as content cost-cutting, advertising and finding other ways to attract more customers to their platforms.