It’s official! Netflix to charge extra for sharing passwords

Netflix has revealed it's plans for 2023 - charging per additional user and rolling out a plan set to feature streaming advertisements.

Oct 20, 2022 - 15:16
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It’s official! Netflix to charge extra for sharing passwords

If you’ve been generous with the sharing of your Netflix password, you’ll soon have to pay the price for it – literally!

The movie and series streaming service has shared news of its plans to charge subscribers more for every additional user on their plan

NETFLIX CHARGES FOR ‘EXTRA USER’

According to a notification issued to shareholders on Tuesday 18 October, Netflix revealed plans to charge additional fees for every “extra member”, starting in 2023.

Whilst no official word on where South Africa stands, Business Insider reports that the country is likely to follow suit in South American countries, where a Netflix “sub-account” is already in place for subscribers.

The publication also reports that the extra fee would equate to a fourth of the member fee – ie R25 per additional member.

Currently, Netflix offers the following price packages in South Africa

  • The Mobile plan, allows you to watch on your phone or tablet for R49 on one device at a time.
  • The Basic plan, which costs R99 per month, allows you to watch Netflix on one screen only on either your phone, tablet, or browser/smart TV
  • With a Standard subscription for R159 a month, you can watch Netflix on two screens at the same time.
  • Those with a Premium Netflix plan, at R199 a month, can watch the streaming service on four screens at once.

ADS AS WELL?

Meanwhile, Netflix has revealed plans to roll out a cheaper subscription – if you’re happy to stream adverts before or during your movie or series.

According to reports, the new ad-supported plan – “Basic with Ads” – will come into effect on 3 November in various countries, including the US, Canada, Australia, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, and the UK.

Although not yet available in SA, the plan will include 4-5 minutes of commercials per hour of content streamed.

For those who wish to continue their current ad-free subscriptions, the Basic, Standard, and Premium plans will remain in place.

Netflix’s monetising plans come after it disclosed it had lost “millions” of subscribers in the first quarter of 2022. 

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