NETFLIX- Sharing is Caring

Sharing is Caring! Really? Reed Hastings (CEO – NETFLIX) and few others might disagree. Recently, Netflix took a major move against a very common practice, where people share their Netflix passwords in order to avoid or split the subscription fee, which is considered quite high by many. Earlier in 2016, Reed Hastings said that password sharing is something that has to be learned to live with since there is so much legitimate password sharing. However, the company is now testing a new log-in warning that is said to prevent unauthorized password sharing if you don’t live with the owner of the account.

How it all started?

Conceived in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph, Netflix.com started life as a DVD rental service in 1998. Around the turn of the century, Netflix introduced the subscription model, moving away from single DVD rental. The idea was now that subscribers could rent as many DVDs as they could watch, without incurring any extra costs or late fees. In 2002, the company brought its IPO on Nasdaq. Five years later, it introduced the feature which changed everything, and with which it is now synonymous: STREAMING. In the following years, it partnered with various technology companies to diversify the ways one could access Netflix. By 2010, PS3, Xbox360, or an Apple device were few such platforms where you could watch Netflix. Central to its success in the new format was the algorithm, that helped to steer users towards the content that they would most enjoy. Content that they could then ‘binge-watch’.

Why do people choose Netflix?

Netflix’s global streaming subscriber base is already more than 204 million accounting for the revenue of 6.64 USD billion as of Q4 2020 (Source: Netflix). In spite of being too expensive, there is a big reason behind its success and being people’s No.1 choice. It reaches people with a variety and quality of content. As of February 2021, the US Netflix library size is around 3579 movies and 1836 shows with an average IMDb rating of 7.5+. To compensate for the premium price subscribers are paying, almost 53% of them share their accounts with friends (17.7%), a family member in a different household (9.2%), and relatives (25.6%).

Netflix users’ main complaints

However, there is a significant number of users with complaints regarding its price hikes, which accounts for almost 36.6% and is the maximum in the complaint list. So, the current attempt by the company to prevent account password sharing is not going to save those extra bucks for us.

Let us see if the subscribers downgrade to a low subscription tier; switch to other lower premium platforms like Amazon Prime, Disney Plus, YouTube, Hulu, etc.; or may find some Jugaad to hold on to the current subscription and save some money after all.

Keep Streaming. Cheers!

Data Source KillTheCableBill

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