Technologies

How Netflix Can Calm the Password-Sharing Outcry

Commentary: We have a quick solution for Netflix’s password sharing woes…

Your mom lives in Ohio. You live in New York but you share a Netflix account. The same is true for the family whose kids are in college and for the couple living apart while one’s stationed on a military base overseas.

I see your stories. I feel you. I’ve been in the same boat.

People are not happy about Netflix’s move to start charging members extra fees to share accounts. The company’s been called out for a 5-year-old tweet: «Love is sharing a password.»

Even the card game Uno joined the Twitter roast to point out the about-face. Swarms of vocal Netflix subscribers are venting on social media — Netflix’s comment sections are really feeling the burn — and vowing to cancel their accounts and questioning why they’re paying for multiple screens.

Netflix has dubbed viewers outside of the primary household as extra members, or subaccounts. In Canada, where the prices are $16.50 for a standard plan and $21 for premium, the cost of adding an extra member is $8 per person. If a single streaming service costing $30 a month to stream on two or four screens sounds like a lot to you, I agree.

In the US, we still don’t know how much it’ll cost each month for extra members. When Netflix finally decides to tell us, I think it should also announce a couple of smart discounts.

Netflix needs a cheaper plan for students

Among those who are unhappy about the new policy are parents and their college kids. If Netflix insists on charging for password sharing, I think it should offer a no-frills student subscription.

College kids love to stream, and they’re often doing it on their parents’ accounts. Not as freeloaders, but as members of the household — even if their school is five states away. When we drop our 17- or 18-year-olds off at college, I bet no one is saying, «Time for me to kick you off Netflix, ya mooch.»

Rather than blocking kids who are attending school far from home, Netflix should offer a student plan that’s priced lower than its basic ad-supported subscription. Hulu, Paramount Plus and Spotify do it, proving that a blueprint exists.

All three platforms use SheerID to verify eligibility for college and university students. Hulu charges eligible students $2 a month for its ad-based plan. Spotify’s Premium Student subscription is $5 per month with the first month free and the added perk of free access to Showtime and Hulu with ads. Paramount Plus provides a 25% discount on its Essential plan for college students that lasts for four years, even if they graduate early.

If Netflix followed suit, it could find the sweet spot between $2 and $5 a month to help a broke college kid out. The company rolled out its $7 ad-based tier in January, joining the ranks of Hulu, HBO Max, Peacock and others who conquered that frontier. Adding a new subscription option aimed at students is reasonably within Netflix’s capabilities. If the streamer wants to keep its subscriber numbers up, why not?

Members of the military should get a discount too

Along with students who spend months — or years — away from home are service members. It’s common for a loved one to be stationed abroad while sharing a single Netflix account with family in their home country or state. Rather than geo-blocking them, or tagging on account-sharing fees, why not offer a military rate for active-duty members? It’s something that streaming services like Disney Plus, Apple TV and Discovery Plus offer for customers.

Why is Netflix charging fees for subaccounts?

For Netflix, everyone has to pay to hit play, specifically if you’re not living under the same roof. From a business perspective, the company wants to tap into opportunities to make money on shared accounts. Meant to fund content creation and overall operations, it was discussed during the company’s first-quarter earnings call in 2022. «Another focus is how best to monetize sharing — the 100M+ households using another household’s account,» the streamer wrote in its letter to shareholders. According to Netflix, more than 30 million of those who believe sharing is caring live in the US and Canada.

The extra costs are currently active in countries including Canada, Spain, New Zealand and Portugal. In some regions, the added fees also come with added steps, like verifying your device is connected to your primary location or sending invites to extra members to use your account.

I like Netflix, but none of the other major streamers is doing this. And as Fox 9 TV host Jason Matheson points out, it’s mighty inconvenient.

Netflix could lose out to the competition

With such a crowded streaming service market, every price hike, add-on fee and inconvenience can make one platform less of a necessity. Netflix is aware that though it was a pioneer in this space, there are rivals that want to be on top. Long ago, it edged out Blockbuster, showing how a business model can make or break a company’s survival.

Let’s not forget that content availability plays a huge role too, because if there’s nothing to watch to justify the monthly rate you’re paying, it’s time to drop something. We rotate our streaming services to save money or if we’ve run out of stuff to stream. If the extra cost is too high, especially in the US, Netflix should expect customers to churn for months at a time. That’s not to say services like HBO Max and Disney Plus are immune to being dropped, because they’ve had to contend with frustrated customers over price increases and show cancellations too.

However, the cost of password-sharing fees may be too high. Only time will tell if this new setup is worth it to Netflix, but it’s going to be an uphill battle to get customers around the world on board. One discount plan could help cushion the blow.

Netflix did not respond to a request for comment.

See at Netflix

Technologies

Amazon’s Alexa Plus Confounds Chris Hemsworth in Super Bowl Ad as the AI Tool Launches

Alexa Plus is aiming higher with a new superhero Super Bowl spot and a US-wide launch, including a free version for any app user.

The Alexa Plus AI has been in early access for over a year, but this week all that changes, starting with a Thursday preview at Amazon’s upcoming Super Bowl ad featuring Chris Hemsworth. Let’s look at how our phones and smart speakers are getting this smart voice assistant upgrade.

I’ve been reviewing beta Alexa Plus over the past year and found the AI upgrade to be highly conversational and more capable than the old Alexa, bringing new ties to third-party apps like Uber and Ticketmaster. Starting on Tuesday, Amazon has completed its rollout and made Alexa Plus available to anyone who wants to try it in the US.

It’s no wonder Hemsworth got worried at just how responsive the voice assistant could be. The rogue AI scenarios in the Super Bowl ad playfully acknowledge people’s fears over inviting generative artificial intelligence into their private lives as the Australian actor gets hacked by a garage door, drowned in his pool and mauled by an Alexa-ordered bear.

Amazon makes it clear that no damage was ultimately done.

«By casting Chris Hemsworth, the last guy on the planet you’d expect to be scared of anything, we were able to lean into the conversation and put people at ease through humor,» said Jo Shoesmith, Amazon’s global chief creative officer.

Alexa Plus arrives with a free version and more

So, what does this new Alexa Plus expansion — available now — include? The most interesting part is several tiers of the AI’s service, starting with a free version that anyone can use as long as they have the Alexa app downloaded or visit the web portal Alexa.com (which we’ve also tried).

You won’t get any advanced Amazon Echo capabilities that way, but you will be able to test out Alexa’s conversational AI and see how similar it is to talking to a human. Alexa Plus errs on the side of chatty, but its ability to summarize answers, stop in mid-conversation and answer follow-up questions is welcome. As I’ve said before, it feels like what voice assistants were always supposed to be like.

«Alexa Plus is built to make customers’ lives meaningfully easier — and that starts with conversation. Because Alexa Plus lives in the middle of everyday life, it has to be natural and trustworthy,» Panos Panay, senior vice president at Amazon Devices & Services, tells CNET. «The Super Bowl is the perfect moment to introduce this evolution at scale.»

Two other Alexa AI tiers exist. The first comes when you subscribe to Amazon Prime for $15 per month. That unlocks not only Prime’s own content but also all Alexa Plus capabilities across all compatible devices. This includes Echo smart speakers and AI video summaries for Ring security cameras, among other tricks. You can try telling your Echo device to «Upgrade to Alexa Plus» to get started.

The final option is paying $20 per month to unlock all Alexa Plus capabilities across all devices, independent of an Amazon Prime subscription. Alexa won’t be able to interact with Prime content like videos or Amazon Music, but it can connect with everything else the AI upgrade offers. Since you need an Amazon account either way, this tier is for specific people who want to avoid Prime content.

Is the new Alexa AI worth your time?

If you’re wondering whether Alexa Plus is worth it compared to alternatives like Gemini for Home or whatever Apple is cooking up with Siri, I found my experience with the voice assistant to be the most positive I’ve had overall. Sometimes a little too positive — as we’ve seen with chatbots, Alexa Plus can be very willing to agree with you and promise to do anything, even if it can’t.

Also, if you use an Echo, it will send your voice recordings to Amazon for automatic analysis; there’s no getting around that privacy concession if you want Alexa on a smart device.

Those issues aside, Alexa Plus as part of Amazon Prime for $15 is an excellent deal, especially if you already use Prime for ordering, catching up on Fallout, etc. If you’re not sure how talking to the new and vivacious Alexa feels like, all you need is an Amazon account to try it out online.

Technologies

Snag a Rare Discount on the Amazing Beats Powerbeats Fit Earbuds With This Limited-Time Deal

Get yourself these amazing earbuds while they’re back down to their lowest-ever price.

The 2025 Beats Powerbeats Fit is on our list of the best workout earbuds and headphones, and right now you can get yourself these powerful Beats Powerbeats Fit earbuds for $180. That’s a $20 discount and brings them back down to their all-time low price. They’re worth it at full price, so if you want them, now’s a fantastic chance to pick them up for less. The only issue is that Amazon’s limited-time deals don’t last long, so you’ll need to be quick if you want to secure them at this price.

The upgrades on the Powerbeats Fit are mostly cosmetic and concern ear fit, so they’re a better fit for people who don’t currently own another pair of Beats in the Powerbeats family. In his review, CNET’s audio expert David Carnoy said, «The design upgrades to the wingtips and case do improve the buds, which remain quite appealing for those looking for secure-fitting earbuds for workouts and everyday use.»

The Powerbeats Fit includes ear tips in four sizes, including extra small, so that everyone can find a secure fit. They can last up to 30 hours when carrying around their charging case, and they offer active noise cancellation that comes in handy when you’re getting your reps in. Both the earbuds and the case are IPX4 water and sweatproof, which means your workout won’t get in the way of your music or audiobooks.

Need more ideas for your next pair of earbuds upgrade? We’ve got a list of the best wireless earbuds you can check out so you can make the most of your holiday cash gifts.

HEADPHONE DEALS OF THE WEEK

Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Noise Canceling Headphones (Black):

$248 (save $152)
Beats Studio Pro Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black):

$170 (save $181)
Sony WH-1000XM6 Wireless Noise Cancelling Over-Ear Headphones:

$398 (save $62)
Bose QuietComfort Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones (Twilight Blue):

$179 (save $170)
Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless ANC Over-Ear Headphones (Black):

$200 (save $250)

Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article.

Why this deal matters

Like other audio gear from Beats, the Powerbeats Fit earbuds offer excellent sound, a comfortable fit and decent noise cancellation. However, they usually command a price of $200. This modest Amazon discount of $20 brings them down to $180 for a limited time, their best price to date across several colors.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Feb. 5, #970

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Feb. 5 #970.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is kind of tough. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Star-spangled signs.

Green group hint: Smash into.

Blue group hint: Not green or red.

Purple group hint: Same surname.