You can feel how you want, but companies are allowed to set (legal) terms for how they offer their services. Netflix has changed theirs, and now it’s up to you and your brother to decide if you still want their product with the new terms.
A meta thread for video streaming services - Netflix, Hulu, Disney, HBO, Warner, Prime, AppleTV, etc
They’re two separate things, at least as described on the support page. The examples they gave for codes were hotel TVs and temporary work laptops. Whereas the monthly authentication was for “trusted devices”. The implication being that codes would expire or only be valid from a given IP address, whereas the devices (presumably up to your screen limit), would just not be blocked so long as they are authenticated regularly.
Very true. But as I have more content than I can ever consume in a lifetime available through a host of other legitimate platforms, I will probably be fine with dropping it.
Besides, Dinosaur Train is Free on the PBS Kids app. If you got that, you are gold.
In any case, changing terms of service can bite a company in the ass really hard. Looking at Wizard of the Coast as a lesson on that.
But that’s not correct. You were paying for up to 4 screens. And the account was not allowed to be shared with members outside your household.
I mean you can’t just decide what you’re paying for if that’s not the terms that the seller is offering. The fact that Netflix just hasn’t been enforcing it doesn’t change that.
Netflix Encouraged Subscribers to Share Passwords Years Before a Crackdown (newsweek.com)
In a March 10, 2017, Twitter thread that was promoting its original series Love, Netflix wrote, “Love is sharing a password.” The single tweet in the thread garnered more than 15,000 likes and more than 4,600 retweets.
Just going to leave this here with you @KWhit .
Anyway, I’ll make a decision as necessary, but history exists, and this is a mess of Netflixs own making.
Wha? Is that supposed to be a gotcha or something? I’m not sure I would put much stock in a vaqgue promotional tweet from the marketing dept. That hardly trumps the official terms agreed upon in the terms of use.
I mean, I find it hilarious that so many account-sharers are acting as if THEY are the aggrieved party here, with an attitude of “I’ll show them!” Uh, they’re just enforcing what was supposed to be happening the whole time.
I don’t know what to tell you. I wouldn’t call myself aggrieved though. Perturbed or annoyed perhaps but aggrieved that’s a $10 word for $1 situation.
I will say, that when a Company changes it’s terms of service (or deciding to enforce terms that it had encouraged users to ignoring) than you have to expect push back from it’s customers. I think that’s only fair, since any change should be justified in some fashion other than ‘More money’.
As I said, the only show I am watching regularly is Dinosaur Train, so dropping Netflix would be pretty easy for me.
I am curious though, how many customers really want 4 screens in one household these days? Are there 4 different people all watching 4 different Netflix shows at the exact same household?
I feel like this might have been true at one time, but in 2023, I have one kid watching Hulu, one kid watching PBS kids, one YouTube Kids, and my wife and I busy managing the house hold.
I don’t think Netflix is as crucial to it’s audience as it once was (and I am ignore the fact that we still have Amazon Prime and Disney+, so even less of incentive to watch Netflix).
But as for Gotcha? I guess it is trying to point out that Netflix has been encouraging the behavior they now are against. It’s seems pretty open and shut. Just like when WotC decided it wasn’t happy not making more money with it’s OGL.
Speaking as a father with a wife and two kids . . . YES!
Really, you all watch 4 different Netflix shows at the same time?
Well, I guess there is always someone that surprised you.
Not regularly, but it happens. We have 4 people and approximately 15-20 devices that we watch Netflix from.
Yes, same here. We pay for four screens because I have two kids and my wife and I often watch different things at night. It happened often enough that we went to 4 at a time.
Except the Premium 4 screen plan is also the only way to get 4K content. Plus the new spatial audio and more devices with content downloads. If it were only 4 screens at once I’d happily drop tiers. Hell, I may still end up cancelling anyway. Not because of the change, but it was a nice reminder that I’m paying over $20/mo now for a service that isn’t offering as much value as it was at $10/mo.
Yep, was also about to point out the frustration of wanting 4k and having to pay for a bloody 4 screen plan…
And that “spatial audio” stuff is only for people watching stuff on their phones…
Yeah, we don’t care about the extra screens, but want to get the the best available video quality.
Fair enough. I have no idea what 4K’s for, so I’m not the intended audience there. :)
It’s for getting the most out of the holes you drilled into your screens.
“Oops!” (don’t get too excited - something’s coming, but I’m guessing they decided to roll in a slightly different direction)
Casey Bloys sat in on The Watch podcast today. Not every day the head of HBO just talks about the industry for an hour.
Zaslav realizes that combining a 3-star Michelin restaurant with a convenience store may not be a great idea after all.
Man, I can’t even imagine wanting to subscribe to Discovery Plus, but then I don’t get the appeal of reality TV at all.