For many of us, the way Netflix works is that one person pays the bills while several others use the account. This has been the case for a long time, perhaps ever since the streaming giant became popular among Indians.
However, this may be about to come to an end. In an email to users, Netflix is now telling them that their account is only for them and members of their household. It also lets them know that if anybody outside their household is using their account, they will be sent emails asking them to stop. This is part of a password-sharing crackdown that Netflix imposed worldwide in May.
Currently, around five million people are using Netflix in India. That’s a significant number but a fraction of the global total. The OTT platform has attracted more users in India, with a considerable entertainment market. The company has invested a lot in local content and has seen some success with shows like Sacred Games.
But the service still faces challenges. For one, it has to compete with traditional television networks in a country where pay TV is cheap, and subscriptions are available for as little as $4 a month. It’s also competing with rivals focusing on sports, including Disney+, which has grabbed big-ticket digital broadcast rights for cricket and other major sporting events.
In addition, the Indian market has very different cultural and societal expectations regarding television. While audiences in other countries are used to seeing a wide range of stories on their television screens, Bollywood producers tend to stick to tried-and-tested plots likely to guarantee box office success. That limits the kinds of stories that can be told in the country, which is a hurdle that Netflix must overcome.
To make things more difficult for new entrants to the market, there are strict censorship regulations in place that have to be taken into consideration when creating original content. While there are some exceptions, it is tough for a new company to enter the space with original programming without going through a lengthy and expensive process of getting the content cleared for release.
For these reasons, it makes sense that Netflix would want to limit access to its accounts as much as possible. The company already requires verification codes for devices being used outside the primary household, and it has made it so that a device has to be connected to a home Wi-Fi network at least once every 31 days to count as being in the primary household. This step will go a long way in ensuring that only users living under the same roof are watching its content. Due to this policy change, The OTT platform will likely see an increase in its membership numbers.
