Netflix customers in Australia don’t seem to be happy with the end of password sharing. Consultancy Telsyte estimates that 200,000 consumers have abandoned the streaming service in the past 12 months, about 3% of the base. The firm points out that it is the first time Netflix has experienced a slump in the Australian market.
The entertainment giant started the movement against password sharing as early as 2022. It has been intensifying throughout 2023, and currently occurs in all countries where the company operates.
The Tumble in Australia
Telsyte estimates that one in three video-on-demand (SVOD) consumers share credentials with people outside the primary household. It’s a very ingrained habit.
Netflix tries to break it. The company’s strategy basically envisions that intruders will start paying for the service when they have access blocked. And in this way, the revenue will rise, even if it generates discomfort and part of the clientele abandons the service.
The latest data shows that Netflix had 232 million subscribers on the planet. Another 100 million people would be borrowing the password to log into the platform.
Data from Telsyte points out that Australian consumers are more likely to switch streaming services to save money. Add to this the fact that the interface of SVODs in general makes the cancellation process very simple.
Only Netflix, No. 1 in the Australian market, has gone down. Amazon Prime Video, which comes in second, grew 9 percent and Disney saw the base increase 1 percent. Paramount+, which brings canned content from the United States along with productions from local broadcaster Channel 10, experienced the highest increase, at 41% in the period.
In practice, a system detects accesses inconsistent with the address and behavior of family members. Account holders are asked to pay an additional amount for the intruders. They can also emancipate themselves and hire an individual subscription (see Netflix prices in this other story).
Before that, however, a message appears on the Netflix login screen asking the person to authenticate and confirm that that device is part of the family nucleus. It ends up creating additional friction for those who simply want to watch movies and series.