Remember back when Netflix went completely angry dad and lashed out at its subscribers for sharing their passwords with their friends, distant relations, neighbors, neighbors’ dogs, enemies, cousin’s primary care doctors, and people they’d just walk past and waved to on the street?
That was years after Netflix had even touted the ability to share a password with a friend as a way to get the world hooked on Netflix. After the turnaround, people freaked, and the world ended, basically. Now HBO—damn it, I mean Max—is following in Netflix’s footsteps by announcing that the company is dog tired of people sharing their accounts.
what the head honchos said
“It’s very soft messaging that will start getting firmer and more visible to subscribers over the months to come,” said JB Perrette, Warner Bros. Discovery’s (which owns Max) head of global streaming, on an earnings call that took place on May 8.
Warner Bros. Discovery’s CEO David Zaslav said the crackdown will begin softly and then grow more aggressive over the next 12 to 18 months, beginning in the US and then spreading across the world.
It was dubbed as a “password-sharing crackdown initiative” by Perrette during the call, melding together two terms that seem juxtaposed, one aggressive and the other beckoning gently. On reflection, though, that seems to be a fair way to categorize Max’s efforts.
Rather than immediately play the heavy, Max seemingly hopes to entice people into subscribing to their Max accounts. More good cop initially. Bad cop comes later down the road, a year or so from now.
Here’s how Tom’s Guide put it: “Max is doing what Netflix and other streaming services are doing, and making your account tied to a home network.”
“Say you have a Max account,” they continue. “Anyone physically in your household will be able to use your Max account, no problem. But anyone outside the household will need an ‘Extra Member Add-on.’”
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