Disney+ to Charge Extra Fee for Account Sharing as Password Sharing Crackdown Begins
Disney+ will allow subscribers to add people outside their home to their plan, but the company didn't reveal how much account sharing will cost.
Sharing your Disney+ account with friends and family will soon come with an extra fee on your monthly bill. As the Disney-backed streamer looks to begin implementing its password-sharing crackdown for U.S. subscribers next month, it is looking to roll out an extra charge to allow for Disney+ account sharing in a move seemingly straight out of Netflix's playbook.
During the company's first-quarter earnings call on Wednesday, Disney's chief financial officer Hugh Johnston shared more details about the company's plan to prohibit users sharing their accounts with those outside of their homes, an initiative that was first announced back in August. Beginning this summer, according to Johnston, per CNET, Disney+ accounts "suspected of improper sharing will be presented with new capabilities to allow their borrowers to start their own subscriptions." Johnston added that later this year, subscribers wishing to "allow access to individuals from outside their household will be able to add them to their accounts for an additional fee."
Johnston did not say how much that fee will be. Netflix currently charges an additional $8 fee to allow subscribers to share their account with someone outside of their household, which is nearly half the price of the ad-supported standard subscription, but slightly more than the $7 monthly price of the basic with ads plan. Currently, Disney+ offers two subscription options, the ad-supported Basic plan at $8 a month and the ad-free Premium plan at $14 a month. It seems likely that the fee to share an account will fall somewhere between those two price points.
Disney first announced plans to begin a password-sharing crackdown in August, Disney CEO Bob Iger saying during the company's earnings call that Disney was actively exploring ways to address account sharing and the best options for paying subscribers to share their accounts with friends and family." He added that Disney "will begin to update our subscriber agreements with additional terms and our sharing policies" later this year and will also "roll out tactics to drive monetization" in 2024.
Last week, subscribers began receiving those emails detailing changes to user agreements for Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+. Under the new term agreements, subscribers cannot share their accounts with anyone outside their primary household residence, unless it's permitted for their tier. The agreement also said the company may check for compliance by reviewing your usage habits and choosing to "limit or terminate access." The policy went into effect on Jan. 25 for new users and begins on March 14 for existing customers.