By: Nick Gambino
If you’re using a streaming service without paying for it, that may change soon.
Streamers like Netflix finally got wise and started to crack down on password sharing between family and friends. I guess they realized this was taking a significant bite out of their bottom line and they could no longer turn a blind eye to it.
And now the behemoth OG of streaming services is looking to do the same. YouTube is getting strict about not allowing users to share their passwords with people who don’t live in their households.
“YouTube Premium family membership will be paused,” an email going out to some users reads. The message is clear and they’re not mincing words – if you’re not paying, you’re not playing.
YouTube Premium is the platform’s paid subscription and while there is a family plan option, this is intended to be used by family members who live with the account holder. Often people will share their account with close family and friends who may live in another state altogether. Heck, I even know people who are still using their ex’s account.
These results have been in place for a while, but until now it doesn’t look like they’ve been enforcing them. Once the plan is paused as a result of the “violation” the user may continue to use YouTube but without the benefits of YouTube Premium like no ads.
Netflix and Disney Plus have recently gotten more serious about curtailing this practice. Both services will log you out if they detect your IP address doesn’t match the main household. This obviously has the unintended effect of making it harder for primary account holders to stream while they’re traveling.
Luckily they don’t make it too hard to log back in. They may require you to get a code from the main account holder to authorize the device. Or it might even prompt you to upgrade your subscription to cover additional users.
While this is annoying to those who enjoy using a streaming service without having to pay, Netflix has seen more subscribers as a direct result of tightening the screws on password sharing. I don’t expect them to loosen up if they’re seeing more money.
