Are you using Netflix’s most expensive premium subscription? Then there is a good chance that you are from one uncomfortable new measure of the streaming service are affected. The premium subscription can be used by 4 people at the same time – but only within one household. Netflix is now cracking down on shared accounts across households. You probably received a notification yesterday telling you the Possibility of a “profile transfer” introduces. What does that mean? Do you have to do anything at all? We explain the change.
The most important information about the profile transfer at a glance
Do I need to do a profile transfer on Netflix?
Basically, all people who use the family subscription are affected by the measure, but do not live in the same household as the other users. Example: You share the family subscription with your family who lives in city A. But you moved out a month ago and are now living in City B. So far, you have been able to use the old subscription without any problems, although Netflix does not officially allow this, at least. This is changing and you need the profile transfer for that.
How does the profile transfer work? Netflix explains the process very clearly here. The short version: You create a new account, so you start your own membership. If you want to do that, you select your old profile and start the new membership based on your old profile. With this, Netflix ensures that you don’t have to start from scratch: your watch list will be transferred, as will your progress in different series seasons and so on.
But when is this step necessary at all?
Netflix Profile Transfer: Yes or No?
When do I really have to carry out the profile transfer? First of all: Netflix already provides the “Profile Transfer” option. But that doesn’t mean you have to use them. There are still no reports of Netflix users being kicked out of their profiles or unable to stream series just because they don’t live in the household where the main member lives.
In addition, will Netflix an alternative to profile transfer offer, as announced at this week’s quarterly meeting. Anyone who is currently “illegally” using a premium account must therefore an additional fee from the beginning of 2023 pay and create a sub-account. The sub-account is then “legal” no matter where you stream.
This measure is already underway in some Latin American countries. The additional fee will probably be around 3 euros. This is how high the costs are in the countries where the regulation is active. It is not yet known whether this extra amount applies to every Netflix fan who streams outside of the household, but this regulation is obvious. If 4 people in Germany share a premium account, each member will pay around 7.50 euros from 2023.
What is behind the measure against shared accounts? Netflix needs to increase its revenue and has identified shared accounts as one of its major sources of loss. So far, the streaming service has tolerated password sharing. However, a loss of members in early 2022 increased the pressure on the company to increase its sales. Netflix also introduced a cheaper advertising plan for the same reason. The 20 best series starts in October: The Walking Dead finale and Netflix horror
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What do you think of the measure?