Netflix Customers Lash out Over Password Sharing Crackdown

Netflix is finally cracking down on password-sharing in the U.S. this quarter – or as the company calls it, "launching paid sharing." The company has been teasing this new system for over a year and has already enacted it in many other countries. Naturally, fans in the U.S. are horrified to hear that it is coming their way at last.

"Paid sharing" is a new system where Netflix uses geolocation and IP addresses to track which devices are logging into Netflix through the same account, what network they are on and where they are in the world. Each user will need to identify their home and so that Netflix will know if devices are being used outside of that home. The company will then shut down outside users after a certain period of time unless the account holder pays an additional fee. Netflix says that 100 million people are sharing passwords in multiple households and that this step will keep the company profitable.

If this sounds familiar, it's because it has made headlines several times already. Last year Netflix had its first fiscal quarter without subscriber growth and it announced plans for this crackdown. A few months later, it began testing "paid sharing" in some countries and users were horrified. Finally, earlier this year Netflix announced that paid sharing was coming to the U.S. and social media filled with outrage. Netflix delayed those plans – until now.

That delay created a misunderstanding for some users who believed that Netflix had simply backed down on the idea altogether. However, in the long run, it seems unlikely that Netflix will give up on the idea of paid sharing. That hasn't stopped it from becoming headline news once again. Here's a look at how users reacted to the big announcement online this week.