Disney Plus begins crackdown against password sharing

[midian182]

A hot potato: Disney Plus is now introducing measures to stop US subscribers from sharing their accounts with friends and family, after anticipating the implementation last year. The company is following in the footsteps of Netflix, which stopped free password sharing in 2022 after previously saying it encouraged the practice.

Disney Plus started sending out the bad news in customer emails yesterday, writes The Verge. The messages highlight changes to the company's terms of service that will make it more difficult for people to log into accounts using credentials that aren't theirs.

Disney said that it can "analyze the use of your account" to determine that people are complying with the new rules, though it doesn't go into further detail about how it will detect sharers. Credentials can only be shared with and used by people within one household, which is defined as a single geographical residence.

The news comes days after Disney-owned Hulu confirmed it was also cracking down on password sharing. Like Hulu, Disney Plus says it reserves the right to limit or terminate someone's account if they're caught breaking the rules.

Another area where Disney Plus' password-sharing crackdown is mimicking Hulu's is the date it will be implemented. The rules are already in place for current subscribers, while current customers have until March 14 to stop others from using their passwords, lest they risk the consequences. There doesn't appear to be any Netflix-style option of paying extra to add non-household members to an account, either.

Disney, of course, wants those people using others' passwords to start subscribing to Disney Plus. And while there will be plenty of customers who leave the service as a result of the new ToS, there will be plenty of new subs to take their place; Netflix gained more new subscribers in the four days immediately following the start of its password-sharing crackdown in the US than in any similar period since 2019.

How things have changed

Video streaming seems to have fallen a long way since its golden age of cheap subscriptions for ad-free content and companies that actually encouraged password sharing. Subscription prices have skyrocketed in the last few years, password-sharing is being banned, and Amazon has introduced ads to Prime for those unwilling to pay extra.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/101794-disney-plus-announces-tough-measures-against-password-sharing.html

 

[The Talking Tech]

The fact that HULU and Disney+ are not combined as one single Service in the U.S as it is already in most of the world is reason enough to share both passwords.

Both Hulu and Disney+ are too expensive for what they offer as stand alone services.

Them cracking on password sharing only will push people more into piracy.

 

[stewi0001]

The fact that HULU and Disney+ are not combined as one single Service in the U.S as it is already in most of the world is reason enough to share both passwords.

Both Hulu and Disney+ are too expensive for what they offer as stand alone services.

Them cracking on password sharing only will push people more into piracy.

If I recall correctly, a reason they are not all in one is because Comcast is still a major share holder in Hulu.

 

[SirDigby]

If I recall correctly, a reason they are not all in one is because Comcast is still a major share holder in Hulu.

I believe Disney agreed to buy the remaining 33% at the end of 2023, and I believe they are now planning to merge the apps.

 

[Neatfeatguy]

Oh noes! Whatever will I do without the crap that Disney creates and puts on their streaming service?

Oh yeah, I won't care because I don't watch it already. Last show I watched was Loki (it was okay) and before that was Andor (which was actually pretty good). I tried Obi-Wan (awful, couldn't get through it) and that has been it over the past 12 months that I've had access to the channel through my brother's account.

Honestly, I'm more upset that I won't be able to watch Phineas and Ferb. I've already purchased all the DVDs that are available from that show, but you only end up with about 1/4 of all the series. I wish Disney would put the series out on disc, I'd be willing to drop drop $150 to buy the entire series (episodes and movies).

I, for one, won't be subbing to Hulu nor Disney and my brother said he was dropping them once the password sharing is stopped.

 

[yRaz]

I'm enjoying watching the current Disney controversy more than I enjoy any Disney product.

 

[Strontium]

We wouldn't even have Disney+ on our media device if it weren't for a friend's password. Yeah, not paying for that crap. Wife and kid are the only ones that watch it and even then they don't much.

 

[Dr Roboto]

I am curious, what happens when you go on vacation/trip somewhere, maybe for 2-3 weeks, and want to stream? What if I visit a family member regularly (weekends, once a month) and I want to use it there?

I am in the camp of subscribing to a defined number of streaming devices, not a fixed location. It is bad enough you only get 4 devices, now you are also geo constrained. FU! The world is mobile, locking people to a geo location is no better than cable. I guess my kids are going to have to do without. They complained when I canceled Netflix, and they lived.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

So do we have a betting pool yet? Will this go like netflix, where it resulted in millions of new subscribers, or will it go the way of the dodo and only increase the loss rate of the subscriptions service? Because disney is losing millions of subs a year.

And unlike netflix, disney's goodwill has been burnt through now. The failures of things like The Marvels and Wish have shown that very well.

 

[axiomatic13]

Do VPN's suddenly not work? This is such a low hurdle people?

 

[kiwigraeme]

Do VPN's suddenly not work? This is such a low hurdle people?

My niece in NZ still uses my Netflix for 5 months 300 miles away , but she accesses it by phone and casts if watching with flatmates

The best solution I believe , is an always on PC , that takes the feed and sends it to friends and family . Do a google search for apps that do this.
No real way to beat this I suppose

 

[Furriest]

If you care about subscription based services that provide recycled and seasonal shows fragmented into multiple paywalled services and movies you've already gave your life to Hollywood and let the TV live your life. I don't watch shows or movies because the last thing I want to do is mentally settle into a feedback loop of infotainment and fiction, money out of the question.

 

[TheBigT42]

Here is a thought. Just limit the number of concurrent streams an account can have.

Done problem solved

 

[daffy duck]

So, people actually subscribe to Disney+?

 

[stewi0001]

I'm enjoying watching the current Disney controversy more than I enjoy any Disney product.

Drama Llama!

 

[ShadowDeath]

The biggest issue with Disney+ doing this is that they aren't Netflix. I can see how Netflix did it and managed to keep their user base. I don't see how Disney+ could pull it off. They will have to offer something that people find valuable enough to sustain a constant membership.