Netflix may have been the first major streaming platform to crack down on password sharing, but it was only a matter of time before another company followed suit. Sadly, Disney is that company.
Currently, the company’s primary streaming platform Disney+ allows users to simultaneously stream across four different devices. That’s been the policy since it first launched. However, one account can actually sign in to up to 10 devices. Now, the company is beginning to actually enforce its policy. The good news is that it might not be enforced where you’re from…yet.
According to Reuters, the crackdown will begin on Disney+ Hotstar in India. While the site claims that the move is more an enforcement of the already existing policy than a “crackdown”, the bottom line is that there’s going to be a lot less leeway when it comes to sharing the Disney+ experience for Indian customers. The enforcement will also apply to the country’s cheaper Disney+ Hotstar plan too. Users who purchase that plan will only be limited to two simultaneous streams.
Now, if you’re wiping the sweat off of your forehead, don’t feel relieved just yet. As previously noted, the policy seems to be the exact same all over the world – including in the United States. So there’s nothing else stopping Disney from expanding the enforcement of its policy other than itself. And the only thing that might ever make them consider doing something like that is a series of production delays that impact profits. Good thing there are no strikes going on that could ever cause that…
Now, Netflix notably saw an increase in subscribers in response to its password-sharing crackdown. That, by itself, should have been enough to get some of the other streamers’ attention.
While there’s no other reason listed for the enforcement happening in India, it should be viewed as yet another litmus test in the ongoing streaming wars. In other words, unless there’s a major decline in streams, Disney+ users in other territories should brace for a not so wonderful world filled with new, stricter rules and potential price increases for years to come.
SOURCE: REUTERS
