After Netflix, Disney+ Restricts Free Account Sharing

Similar to Netflix controlling free account sharing, Disney+ is starting its password-sharing crackdown, asking users to pay extra for access.

People are used to misusing loopholes wherever they can. In the world of OTT, this behavior has led to a huge loss of potential revenue for the biggest service providers. Netflix was one of the early companies to restrict password and account sharing, which Disney+ is now adopting to safeguard revenue growth. Disney+ has informed its entire customer base that it is restricting users from sharing passwords outside their households.

Ever since Disney+ launched its OTT platforms, it has never put a restriction on password sharing. This must have been a part of the early adoption strategy to get more consumers hooked on its platforms. With 158.3 million users worldwide, the platform has enough stats that people are hooked to it.

The changes Disney+ is bringing are more subtle than those of Netflix. It has chosen the United States, Canada, Europe, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Asia-Pacific region to begin rolling out the new paid-sharing program. It will expand to a broader audience in the coming weeks. 

According to Disney+ officials, the new paid service will provide complete access to users within a single household. Users will have to register a collection of devices under one registration address. For users outside the household, an extra member add-on is available at a monthly cost of $6.99 for basic and $9.99 for premium plans. For household members traveling, Disney+ provides an ‘I am traveling’ option to access the account for a temporary period.

The process of shifting existing extra user profiles in an account is also convenient for customers. Users can choose to continue as an extra member or convert into a new subscription account while preserving watch history, saved titles, and much more. This will allow users to seamlessly convert into paid subscribers without restarting their streaming journey.

Disney+ is not limiting its paid sharing plans to one platform. The company aims to enable this restriction on Hulu and ESPN+ as well. In the case of Netflix, users had to refer to online tips like the ultimate Netflix guide. But in case of Disney+, just paying the required amount is enough to continue streaming without any hiccups.