Poor Netflix
Netflix is going to lock down accounts and limit the leeching, according to a bunch of articles like this one or that one floating around. This doesn’t come as a surprise, yet, I’m pissed about it so you get a post.
For starters, Netflix is already charging over $15 a month for their standard account. To the best of my knowledge, there is no other streaming service at that rate besides Amazon Prime ($14.99) which delivers much more than just shows and movies, and also allows household accounts.
Netflix used to look the other way (other streaming services seem to have done this in general) when people shared their accounts. In fact, they encourage it, if to judge from their “manage profiles” section when signed in.
Above: Netflix asks which member of the account is watching, indicating sharing an account is a feature of the service.
I wasn’t born yesterday, and neither were you. When a company’s stocks crash, the company freaks out. Suddenly you start hearing about limited shared accounts, how piracy is a problem, and how ads are not such a bad idea after all.
Netflix just raised their prices, and they might just raise them a bit more. Are you going to pay more than $15 a month per person in your home to enjoy some streaming shows while being interrupted by ads? I didn’t think so.
Is there any better way to have folks run away to the internet and download whatever they want to their heart’s content? Sure, your’e robbing the poor actors, stealing from the studios, and committing horrible crimes. Think about the children! Boo-freakin'-hoo. It’s the same old argument coming from the same greedy companies who can’t satisfy their greedy shareholders fast enough.
Why does every company has to keep growing and swallow everything else around it and then turn around and cry when there isn’t enough left to eat?
Of note: After I wrote this post, I found out Trevor Noah at the Daily Show had a few things to say as well.