Netflix recently decided to tighten the screws on password sharing, the practice of giving free access to your Netflix account to someone who does not live under your roof.
Paid password sharing in Spain, loss of 1 million subscribers
After testing a feature in several South American countries that allows you to add an additional member to your account via additional payment, Netflix rolled it out this year, starting with four countries: Canada, New Zealand, Portugal in Spain. And it is precisely on Spain that a recent study by the firm Kantar focuses. We learn that in the first quarter of 2023, Netflix lost one million subscribers in Iberia, three times more than in the previous quarter. It is therefore not incongruous to attribute this fall to the platform's new anti-password sharing policy.
Netflix anticipates a resumption of subscription
According to Kantar, the future is not bright as 10% of current subscribers plan to leave Netflix next quarter. And by the way, the impact is felt on the competition since Prime Video becomes the leader in streaming in Spain with a penetration rate of 67.3% against 66% for Netflix. When questioned, Netflix representatives do not appear to be worried about this situation, declaring that they have anticipated such a drop but also a resumption of subscription in the long term, i.e. within a few months, of a large part of the users concerned by paid sharing. of the password hitherto subscribers and/or non-subscribers. However, Netflix's plans could be thwarted in view of an increasingly inflationary economic situation since the start of the war in Ukraine. Many consumers say they want to reduce their frivolous spending, which includes Netflix, to focus on the useful. See you in a few months, quarters, to check if the Netflix strategists were right, or not.
