Netflix to charge users who share their passwords with people outside their homes – The Khaama Press News Agency

Netflix will charge users who share their accounts with people outside of their households.

A few weeks after Netflix raised the price of its monthly subscriptions in the US, the company said it is testing a new feature that will charge customers an additional fee for the ability to share accounts.

Netflix said the new option will be tested over the next few weeks in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru before making changes in other countries.

“While these [household plans] have been very popular, they have also created some confusion about when and how Netflix can be shared,” Chengyi Long, director of product innovation at Netflix, said on Wednesday. “As a result, accounts are shared across households, which affects our ability to invest in new TV shows and movies for our members.”

Existing subscribers will be able to add subaccounts for up to two people they don’t live with at no additional cost, it added. In Costa Rica, the feature will cost $2.99 ​​a month, and users in Chile and Peru will pay the local equivalent.

Netflix shares rose 3.9% on Thursday. The stock has lost nearly half its value since its all-time high in mid-November. Analysts have attributed much of that drop to slowing Netflix subscriber growth. The company posted an average annual growth in paid subscribers of 24% between 2016 and 2020, but only managed 9% growth last year.

Netflix is ​​also facing increased competition between streaming platforms and rising programming costs. The company is spending more on content to attract and keep subscribers, as viewers have more content to choose from thanks to a crowded field.