Its CEO anticipates when the restriction will be activated for users

It’s been more than a year since the end of Netflix account sharing in Europe was announced; one of the most controversial measures of the platform, which aimed to put an end to a very common practice but which cost the company a lot of money.

Even though the initial effect of the measure was negative, both in terms of marketing and revenue, time has proven Netflix right; The platform closed 2023 by adding 22 million subscribersdestroying all forecasts that pointed to minimal growth.

Although unpopular, the measure achieved exactly what Netflix wanted: that instead of accessing using a family member or friend’s account, people start creating their own accounts

to access the content you love. And the rest of the companies took note.

Disney+ will end shared accounts

According to reports ReutersDisney CEO Bob Iger confirmed in an interview with CNBC that the Disney+ service will begin blocking the practice of account sharing from June; Although it is not clear if this measure will be applied in the United States or if it will be applied globally, including in Europe.

The motivation behind this decision is clear: Disney needs to improve its service’s numbers. Unsurprisingly, Bob Iger announced the changes the day after a shareholders’ meeting, during which he was criticized for poor performance in the streaming sector

. In response, Iger said that “eventually” Disney would achieve double-digit growth in this sector; and it aims to achieve this by requiring users who use someone else’s account to create one.

Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company.

Disney hasn’t confirmed exactly how it plans to block shared accounts; but it will likely be similar to Netflix, with a given home allowing a limited number of devices to connect. Connections outside the home are considered “shared” and are blocked, with the exception of connections from classic smartphones.

There is also the question of how Disney intends convert shared accounts to new subscriptions. We can still watch Netflix, which has decided to create a new concept: “the additional subscriber”, which costs 5.99 dollars in addition to the monthly subscription and allows you to create a user, with their own profile and password. pass. Additional subscribers can then become regular subscribers, retaining their history and profile.

Bob Iger’s message is: The streaming industry needs ‘consolidation’, referring to the large number of services born in recent years. Its competitors came to the same conclusion, with HBO Max becoming Max after merging with other services from the same company.