Netflix Canada Discussion

[Faust]

Netflix ridiculed over resurfaced “love is sharing a password” tweet:

https://www.nme.com/news/tv/netflix-...-tweet-3392067

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by Faust

Netflix ridiculed over resurfaced “love is sharing a password” tweet:

https://www.nme.com/news/tv/netflix-...-tweet-3392067

maybe if it was 6 months ago and not 6 years it would be legit to ridicule.
that's ancient history and the streaming landscape has changed so much in that time.

How much revenue is even 25% of those 100 million shared accounts in this fractured streaming world. can't just let that money go.

[PsYcNeT]

Of course that assumes two things:

a) Everyone who had a shared password ends up paying for a new account

b) The backlash to the policy doesn't end up with users cancelling

I think Netflix will find that b) vastly outweighs a) and they will have no means to backpedal on this one.

Expect a lot more cancellations.

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by timun

I thought Netflix walked all this "no more password sharing without paying us an extra fee" stuff back last week? Or was that just w.r.t. the US?

Just in the U.S.

Canada, Spain, Portugal and New Zealand all had this start this week.

[dammage79]

I had one person share my Netflix. Can't justify paying 27 a month for it. Yes, 27 all in when adding the 8 dollar share fee.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by timun

I thought Netflix walked all this "no more password sharing without paying us an extra fee" stuff back last week? Or was that just w.r.t. the US?

They apparently changed the rules but didn't walk it back completely.

It's still not confirmed exactly how it'll be applied and presumably it'll evolve depending on the backlash.

Originally it was $8 or whatever for every extra account outside of the household. Now it seems like you'll have to reconfirm ownership with the account owner every 7 days according to a reddit post from a guy who called netflix and asked a bunch of questions (i think it was deleted because I can't find it anymore).

Basically you'll have to type in a 6 digit code regularly to avoid the extra account charges but I've yet to see any confirmation that is how it'll work for everyone.

That would effectively only kick off the leeches who use someone elses account and they don't know about it. If it is you and your parents, presumably you can text them the code when they need it.

He also said they wouldn't allow out of country netflix anymore. So if travelling to the US, you don't get their netflix at all, you have to sign up if you want their library.

[Jimmy Stang]

^ I have read that they are also going to be monitoring the "home" IP address plus the type of device you are on. Mobile devices will get treated a bit differently because of travel, but smart TVs, streaming boxes, etc. won't because the can't easily come back to the home IP.

I received the "Netflix is for one household" email introducing the changes yesterday morning, giving me until later this month to set my home location. But later yesterday evening, my sister-in-law has reported that she's booted already.

For what its worth, she says that she'll probably end up getting her own low-tier account for herself. I am on the fence about whether there is continued value in Netflix with so many other services that I am paying for.

While I don't think that I'll rage quit, if it becomes too much of a hassle to prove my location, I could see myself cancelling and re-subscribing periodically as my TV watching schedule fluctuates.

There is just so much content on so many services. I could benefit from dropping one of them, and it will probably be the one that is the most hassle to use.

[Swift]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Stang

I received the "Netflix is for one household" email introducing the changes yesterday morning, giving me until later this month to set my home location. But later yesterday evening, my sister-in-law has reported that she's booted already.

Did everyone else receive an email? I haven't got anything yet.

[InglewoodFan]

I brought it up with the family over Christmas that one of Crave, Netflix, Disney had to go as I just wasn't seeing the usage to justify them all. I keep launching Netflix and looking for something to watch and nothing is really catching my interest anymore. I haven't got much traction yet, but Netflix has moved into a precarious position for sure.

[Jimmy Stang]

Originally Posted by Swift

Did everyone else receive an email? I haven't got anything yet.

Maybe I'm just lucky.

Here's the text of the email, though it is light on technical details.

Netflix is for a single household

Hi James,

Netflix is meant to be shared in one household — people who live in the same location.

No matter what, we want to make sure it’s easy for you to watch Netflix when you travel, or if you visit different places.

To control how your Netflix account is used, you have some options:

• Set your primary location by February 21st. Anyone who lives at your primary location can use this Netflix account. We’ll help you set this on your TV. Learn more.
• Watch while you travel. You can still easily stream with your personal devices or log into Netflix on a new TV, like at a hotel or vacation rental.
• Review device activity. Control who has access to your account from the new Manage Access and Devices page.

If you want to share your account with someone who doesn’t live at your primary location, we have some new features to choose from:

• Transfer a profile. Anyone on your account can transfer a profile to a new membership that they pay for. Learn more.
• Buy an extra member. You can share Netflix with someone who lives in a different location for $7.99/month more. Learn more.

We know you might have questions. Our Help Center has detailed information, and you can always contact us.

Thank you for choosing Netflix. We appreciate your membership and we look forward to bringing you more great TV shows and movies.
The Netflix team

[TorqueDog]

I cancelled Netflix midway through December and haven't looked back. It just became the service that cost the most per month, yet provided the least value for what it cost.

If I want 4K, HDR, and spatial audio with Netflix, I had to pay for the highest tier at $22 a month. That same tier also is meant to support up to four consecutive screens. Well, there's two people in this house, the cat doesn't watch Netflix (he's a YouTube kind of cat), so at most it's only one screen at a time ever using the bloody thing. As far as I'm concerned, the ability to share the account and split the cost basically was making use of the remaining three screens I was paying for and entitled to (which in effect would mean TWO consecutive screens might be used at a time).

I'm still evaluating my other streaming services at this point since my Plex setup is doing everything I need it to at this point. But none of them were quite as bad a value proposition as Netflix made itself, so it was an easy cut.

Add a second house for $7.99 a month? When I was paying $22 a month and couldn't use all the screens I was entitled to? Netflix can f--k off.

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

Of course that assumes two things:

a) Everyone who had a shared password ends up paying for a new account

b) The backlash to the policy doesn't end up with users cancelling

I think Netflix will find that b) vastly outweighs a) and they will have no means to backpedal on this one.

Expect a lot more cancellations.

I don't think they would assume a). Presuming there is some incremental cost (server use/bandwidth) every time someone streams a show, however small, even if none of those people pay for a new account they come out ahead by reducing their costs without reducing revenue. Any that do subscribe put them further ahead. But if there is enough backlash that people who are paying start cancelling subscriptions that would be a different story, Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro recently found out the hard way about making your customers angry. I'm just not sure this policy would make many of the people that pay for the accounts that upset.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

I cancelled Netflix midway through December and haven't looked back. It just became the service that cost the most per month, yet provided the least value for what it cost.

If I want 4K, HDR, and spatial audio with Netflix, I had to pay for the highest tier at $22 a month. That same tier also is meant to support up to four consecutive screens. Well, there's two people in this house, the cat doesn't watch Netflix (he's a YouTube kind of cat), so at most it's only one screen at a time ever using the bloody thing. As far as I'm concerned, the ability to share the account and split the cost basically was making use of the remaining three screens I was paying for and entitled to (which in effect would mean TWO consecutive screens might be used at a time).

I'm still evaluating my other streaming services at this point since my Plex setup is doing everything I need it to at this point. But none of them were quite as bad a value proposition as Netflix made itself, so it was an easy cut.

Add a second house for $7.99 a month? When I was paying $22 a month and couldn't use all the screens I was entitled to? Netflix can f--k off.

This is what I don't get.

Sure have a pricing structure for streaming quality, I'm not against that. I'm also not against limiting streams. But why not just do tiered packages and then have a la carte options?

Even if it means a majority of people will end up paying more, they'll accept it if it means they can actually get what they want and see some value in what they're paying for. Come out and say you're making adjustments to the pricing structure to better serve the needs of your subscribers and their varied streaming habits.

Why do this whole about face on password sharing in the most unpopular way possible? It's like they intentionally found the most likely way to piss off their subscriber base.

And right at a time when they're getting constantly badmouthed for having #### content and cancelling series. Netflix was always the streaming service every kept regardless because it had new content coming and was cheap enough to justify. Now they have abandoned both of those. They don't even add any 3rd party content anymore. Like ####, give me some decent 90s/00s movies or something. Prime/Disney/Paramount are doing this all the time.

[Wormius]

Crave went up in price, but their content is also light years beyond Netflix’s. If Netflix wants to start charging more and restricting use, they really ought to get back the content like new releases. Crave and Disney are so much better for that.

[TorqueDog]

Honestly, if it was $12.99-$14.99/month for 4K HDR and spatial audio and no ads, but I could only stream on two concurrent screens, I'd still be a subscriber and this password-sharing business wouldn't even matter. But if they're telling me I have all these screens but can't choose how and where they get used, then they're offering me something I get no value out of.

There's going to be a collapse of streaming at some point with how saturated the market has gotten, and I think Netflix will take an even bigger hit going forward. I'd not be surprised if this becomes a case study in management and business courses of how to completely screw your business.

[Leeman4Gilmour]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Stang

Maybe I'm just lucky.

Here's the text of the email, though it is light on technical details.

Maybe it's too small of a membership scenario, but this policy doesn't support one household families with kids off to University. Which is my scenario. I paid for the increased number of users to cover this. Maybe it ends up being the same, I haven't looked into at all.

[topfiverecords]

This will all shift again when a lot of people notice that two separate accounts total $42 and one account with sharing is $29.

They'll just do that and convince their friend/family member to send them $175/year and both save $6.50 per month.

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by dammage79

I had one person share my Netflix. Can't justify paying 27 a month for it. Yes, 27 all in when adding the 8 dollar share fee.

could you justify $5.99 and telling that one person to get their own?

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

This will all shift again when a lot of people notice that two separate accounts total $42 and one account with sharing is $29.

They'll just do that and convince their friend/family member to send them $175/year and both save $6.50 per month.

For some maybe. But the problem for netflix is that many people think the platform is way over priced in an already saturated streaming market. The only way netflix is worth the current price is by splitting it.

When faced with the choice of paying even more, I think many people will just straight up cancel.

[The Yen Man]

Netflix is terrible for movies now. Seems like they went all in on Korean dramas and movies, but other than that and some rare good original content like Stranger Things, there's not a lot to entice me to want to actually pay for Netflix once they lockdown on the sharing.

I mean, if they made it $8, and it's unlimited sharing, I might bregrudgingly get behind that, so that's no so much between say me, and my parents leeching off my brother's account. But $8 per account is not worth it IMO.