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Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

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Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#141
post #13

The Netflix I pay for is currently used by: Me, Mom, Dad, Grandparents, GF, GFs Mom. Other than myself and my GF, most of the people on this list watch something on Netflix every couple of months, when I or someone/something else recommend them a movie or show. I don't want them to use my profile, because we then obviously can't watch the same things, and it'll break my recommendations. I get why Netflix wants to spl…

> In the end, these streaming platforms are probably right that you shouldn't be allowed to share accounts if you don't live under the same roof

How many individual users are allowed on an account and whether they need to have any particular relationship (residential or otherwise) are completely arbitrary decisions.

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#142
post #87
post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also have this use case and think it's really important. When I was a kid you could take a favorite VHS or DVD with you. Now you take your subscription. Sure, I guess you could take a phyusical authorized device (e.g. an iPad) with you, then screen cast it. But that requires grandma to figure out screen casting. And I'm trusting my kid with a $300 device instead of a $15 media artifact. Lame.

I'm actually curious if the physical device looks any more innocent in Netflix's future policies than straight-up credential sharing. It's still coming from a new IP.

It will, because of cookies or a unique randomly generated app ID on installation.

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#143
post #3

This just gives piracy yet another advantage. The article clearly mentions that credentials sharing is currently used as a mitigation to the balkanization of streaming services, allowing the cost of all major subscriptions to be spread across several people, essentially bringing down the per-person cost to a reasonable, single subscription's cost. Cracking down on this doesn't mean people will start paying, they will…

or people will just create a shared email account, or set up a forwarding rule for the verification emails... I agree with another commenter. This seems targeted at people who are borrowing someone's account without their knowledge or consent.

They're going to use a phone number, watch.

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#145
post #92
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you can't share accounts, why can you create a seemingly unlimited amount of profiles?

They aren’t unlimited, there are 5. Profiles are defined as being in the same household. The reasons are easy to understand, if you think about it. Netflix is providing separate queues and ratings for people who have to share, and household sharing is unavoidable in some cases, such as when using shared devices like ipads or game consoles. Or, you could just visit Netflix.com, where they explain the reasons behind pr…

How is torrenting different from going to the library and borrowing DVD for free? Besides scale and efficiency, in principle, how is tpb different from a library?

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#146
post #128
post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Don't really know what I should think about this to be honest... Ultimately, piracy is the only remaining option. Because the company has decided it's going to brand you a pirate anyway. It costs maybe 11$/mo to hire a seedbox running plex that can store whatever media you would want to watch. While it's not next-day or same-day in most cases, in my experience it covers basically everything you would want to watch,…

Don’t know if I really buy the “piracy is the only option” line any more. It was for years. But you can now legally pay for the content you want, you just don’t like the price.

I feel like this is not true in regards to older material. Shows like wkrp in Cincinnati can never be made available with all of the music liceasing issues. Some classic shows like soap get censored. Some shows just go missing. Most never make it to streaming and many aren't available for purchasing.

Piracy is just as important. The reason why more don't is because it is easier to just pay and perhaps the content is not worth the effort anymore. People watch movies on fast forward now, play games on phones while watching and generally tv or movie viewing as a background activity.

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#148
post #13

The Netflix I pay for is currently used by: Me, Mom, Dad, Grandparents, GF, GFs Mom. Other than myself and my GF, most of the people on this list watch something on Netflix every couple of months, when I or someone/something else recommend them a movie or show. I don't want them to use my profile, because we then obviously can't watch the same things, and it'll break my recommendations. I get why Netflix wants to spl…

> In the end, these streaming platforms are probably right that you shouldn't be allowed to share accounts if you don't live under the same roof How many individual users are allowed on an account and whether they need to have any particular relationship (residential or otherwise) are completely arbitrary decisions.

And the alternative is what?

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#149
post #131

"The easiest way to stop piracy is not by putting antipiracy technology to work. It's by giving those people a service that's better than what they're receiving from the pirates." - Gaben

Let's use the same analogy for a young struggling artist - "The best way for me to stop buying $1 copies of your $100 paintings is for you to give me a service that better than what I get from pirates." This is why we can't have nice things. Because people feel entitled to others people's work.

Pirates don't pirate because they can get it cheaper. Some do, but not by and large. If that was the case, streaming services wouldn't have become a multi billion dollar a year industry that revolutionized the music, movie and TV industry. I guarantee you every single 30 something with a Netflix account had limewire or bearshare or something on their computer as teenagers, but now they don't, because the money was never the prime motivator.

Pirates pirate because of bad UX, which Netflix solved for them and others copied, which the entire industry now seems hell bent on breaking again. And they think their size and the DMCA and the learning curve to pirating nowadays can prevent it from happening, so sure, let's abuse our customers now that we think they can do nothing about it. But this will fail. If it is easier to learn how to use torrents and mega and whatever else than it is to navigate the plethora of services to find what you want (at the current rate we will need TV Guide again soon) and call your girlfriend at work to get the 2fa code they just sent to her phone, people will do it.

Re: Netflix to start testing warnings for people borrowing login info

#150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is it that you think is appropriate for you to be pissed off about? You pay for Netflix for you and your household, not for anyone that happens to be related to you. Has that ever not been the case?

Perhaps because they've doubled their streaming service's cost, reduced their content amount and availability, and are now properly warning they are going to be cracking down on geographically distant usage by users of the same account. At this point I'm paying 20 USD/m for Netflix, roommate for HBOMax, friend's password (via reciprocal sharing) for Disney+, and our online TV service, which my elderly disabled mother…

> The post-cable/satellite TV revolution has tripled my costs from what it used to be.

Huh. You must have had a really great deal on that nonspecific cable/satellite. Every time I’ve looked at TV packages since before streaming services even existed, it was $50/mo before various fees and at least $70 on the bill, just for basic cable.

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