Netflix Expands Password-Sharing Crackdown Worldwide

Netflix on Tuesday expanded its crackdown on users sharing passwords with people beyond their immediate family as it seeks to shore up revenue at the leading streaming television service, according to a report published in AFP.

"A Netflix account is for use by one household," the company said in a statement.

The AFP report stated, Netflix said early this year that more than 100 million households were sharing accounts at the service, "impacting our ability to invest in great new TV and films."

Netflix has experimented in a few markets with "borrower" or "shared" accounts, in which subscribers can add extra users for a higher price or transfer viewing profiles to separate accounts.

On Tuesday, it announced it was expanding the policy to more than 100 countries.

As growth at Netflix cooled last year, the Silicon Valley-based streaming giant set out to nudge people watching for free with shared passwords to begin paying for the service without alienating subscribers, added the AFP report.

"This account sharing initiative helps us have a larger base of potential paying members and grow Netflix long term," co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said on an earnings call.

The company told financial analysts recently that it had delayed a broad crackdown on password sharing "to improve the experience for members."

Netflix said it made sure subscribers have seamless access to the service away from home or on various devices such as tablets, TVs or smartphones, reported AFP

"They are just trying to reduce theft of their service," independent tech analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group said.