Netflix, Disney+, and Other Streaming Giants Are All Set to Fight Piracy

Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video are about to crack down on illegal viewing to combat piracy.

“There is at least $29.2 billion in lost revenue each year due to online TV and film piracy in the US. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of jobs are being lost in the entertainment industry as a result of spiraling global visits to such sites,” stated Motion Pictures Association (MPA).

Streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, etc. have become key parts of our daily lives. They provide endless hours of binge-worthy videos and tempting blockbuster series. As they’re very expensive, many viewers handpick which services they subscribe to – resulting in password sharing and outright piracy.

Globally, Netflix alone has 223 million subscribers, with another 100 million households using passwords they share with existing subscribers to access the streaming service. For several years, the streaming companies overlooked this practice, but now they plan to crack down by requiring subscribers to pay an add-on fee to share their accounts with others.

According to the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), “There is a range of provisions in criminal and civil law which may be applicable in the case of password sharing where the intent is to allow a user to access copyright-protected works without payment.”

“Where these provisions are provided in civil law, it would be up to the service provider to take action through the courts if required,” they added.

Netflix already started testing the add-on fee ($3) for password sharing with different households in Peru, Costa Rica, and Chile last year. If reports are to be believed, Netflix plans to introduce this change in the US early this year. Users who share passwords with friends and family who don’t live in the same household will have to pay an additional fee. Account activity, device IDs, and IP Addresses will be taken into account to enforce this practice.