Netflix Is Testing an Extra Charge for Users Who Share Passwords

Christian Hetrick

Christian Hetrick is dot.LA's Entertainment Tech Reporter. He was formerly a business reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer and reported on New Jersey politics for the Observer and the Press of Atlantic City.

Netflix Is Testing an Extra Charge for Users Who Share Passwords
Courtesy of Netflix

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The days of watching Netflix for free on someone else’s account could soon come to an end.

The streaming giant said Wednesday that it’s testing an extra fee for subscribers who share their Netflix accounts with people outside of their households. The company is initially rolling out these charges in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru over the next few weeks.


Under the pilot program, Netflix will allow subscribers in those countries to share their accounts with up to two people who they don’t live with, in exchange for a fee of less than $3. The company did not say if or when it would roll out the feature in the U.S., noting that it is “working to understand [their] utility” before deciding to implement them “anywhere else in the world.”

The Silicon Valley-based company, which has a huge footprint in Los Angeles, has ramped up its efforts to crack down on password sharing. Last year, Netflix sent some viewers messages reportedly warning: “If you don’t live with the owner of this account, you need your own account to keep watching.”

In January, Netflix reported a slowdown in subscriber growth that sent its stock price falling. Netflix had roughly 222 million subscribers at the end of last year—a figure that doesn’t include the countless others who access the streaming platform with someone else’s account.

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LA Tech ‘Moves’: Mapp Gains New CPO and CTO, Prodoscore Taps Boeing Exec

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

LA Tech ‘Moves’: Mapp Gains New CPO and CTO, Prodoscore Taps Boeing Exec
LA Tech ‘Moves’:

“Moves,” our roundup of job changes in L.A. tech, is presented by Interchange.LA, dot.LA's recruiting and career platform connecting Southern California's most exciting companies with top tech talent. Create a free Interchange.LA profile here—and if you're looking for ways to supercharge your recruiting efforts, find out more about Interchange.LA's white-glove recruiting service by emailing Sharmineh O’Farrill Lewis (sharmineh@dot.la). Please send job changes and personnel moves to moves@dot.la.

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Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

Raises
Image by Joshua Letona

A local space robotics startup raised fresh funding to expand the flight model manufacturing facilities throughout the U.S. and increase employment, while a remote litigation platform raised more funding to continue growing its footprint in new markets across the country, develop service channels for its clients and continue expanding its tech team.

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Samson Amore

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.

Gitai Secures $30 Million in Funding to Continue Space Robotics Developments
\u200bPhoto: Gitai

Space robotics company Gitai raised a $30 million Series B extension this week, bringing the total value of the round to roughly $47 million.

The funding will be used to further develop Gitai’s suite of space robots as well as build out its manufacturing footprint in Torrance. Previously Gitai announced it raised a $17.1 million Series B in March 2021; this additional raise is still part of that round.

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