Disney+ started getting strict about password sharing in Canada last year, and now it’s expanding the restriction to the US. According to The Verge, the streaming service has been sending out emails to its subscribers in the country, notifying them about a change in its terms of service. Its service agreement now states that users may not share their passwords outside of their household “unless otherwise permitted by [their] service tier,” suggesting the arrival of new subscription options in the future.
The Verge says Disney+ told subscribers that they can analyze the use of their account to “determine compliance,” though it didn’t elaborate on how its methods work exactly. “We’re adding limitations on sharing your account outside of your household, and explaining how we may assess your compliance with these limitations,” Disney+ reportedly wrote in its email. In its Service Agreement, the service describes “household” as “the collection of devices associated with [subscribers’] primary personal residence that are used by the individuals who reside therein.” The rule already applies to new subscribers, but old ones have until March 14 to feel its effects.
Disney lost 1.3 million subscribers last quarter. I’m sure this will help. 🙄
It worked for Netflix. It’s easy to scoff at the clearly customer-antagonistic policies these services are turning towards, inevitably accompanied by the “well, they lost me as a subscriber” flood of comments. But the unfortunate truth is the vast majority of people just shut up and pay, resulting in big net income for the corporations that enact these policies.
I’m not sure that it actually did work for Netflix. I’ve seen at least one article claiming that Netflix lost subscribers in western markets after the change, but also added large numbers of subscribers in developing markets where the subscription price was much cheaper. Netflix spun this as “we added more users last quarter.”