Following previous efforts to crack down on password sharing in other territories, Netflix is now attempting to do likewise in the UK.

Advertisement

Netflix announced in February that "a Netflix account is intended for one household", and now the streamer is notifying UK customers that they must pay £4.99 per month if they want to share their account with someone outside their home.

The scheme is also being rolled out in the US, where users will have to pay $7.99 for an additional user.

Based on previous such endeavours in territories such as Canada, it is expected that UK users will now need to set up a "primary location" for their account. It is not known exactly when users will be asked to do this from.

In that scheme, up to two sub-accounts could be added for the additional fee, while the streamer assured users that they would still be able to "easily watch Netflix on their personal devices or log into a new TV, like at a hotel or a holiday rental."

More like this
Aparna Brielle in FUBAR
Milan Carter as Barry Putt and Aparna Brielle as Tina Mukerji in FUBAR. Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix

Kantar has reported that when the scheme was trialled in Spain, Netflix lost more than a million subscribers in the first three months of the year.

Read more:

In an interview with Variety in January, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters admitted that the crackdown would "not be a universally popular move".

Many users upset with said move have pointed to Netflix's own Twitter account, which in 2017 posted a tweet saying that "love is sharing a password".

The decision to crack down on password sharing came after Netflix was projected to have lost around 500,000 UK subscribers in 2022, according to research firm Ampere Analysis.

This year has seen the streamer hit big with shows including The Night Agent, The Diplomat and Bridgerton spin-off Queen Charlotte.

You can sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

Check out more of our Documentaries coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight.

Advertisement

Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement