Technologies

Netflix Password Sharing Crackdown Sees Over 200,000 New Subscribers Sign Up

If someone’s just booted you off their Netflix account, maybe you’re one of the many new signups for the streaming giant.

Netflix has raked in hundreds of thousands of new account signups since it started charging people extra if they have other users on their account.

That’s according to stats from streaming data analyst Antenna, as reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal. Antenna says Netflix has seen «the four single largest days of US user acquisition» since Antenna started recording subscriptions on the streaming service four and a half years ago.

«Based on the most current data available, Netflix saw nearly 100,000 daily signups on both May 26 and May 27,» Antenna said in a post. «These exceed the spikes in signups Antenna observed during the initial US COVID-19 lockdowns in March and April 2020.»

Cancellations have also gone up since Netflix changed its policy on who you can have on your account, but not as much as new signups.

Netflix does not comment on third-party research.

How much extra does Netflix password sharing cost?

Netflix introduced the extra charge for password sharing late last month, and it now costs you an additional $8 on top of your subscription fee to have someone not from your household share your account.

If you pay for Netflix’s Premium tier at $20 a month, you can add two more people to your account. If you’re on the standard plan for $15.50, you can have only one extra member. The $10 basic plan doesn’t allow for extra members, and if you’re on Netflix’s new ad-supported plan — which already has 5 million subscribers — and pay just $7 a month for the streaming service, you also can’t add extra members.

Netflix with ads is missing some shows and movies, but on the other hand, ads don’t play over everything, CNET’s review of the service found.

What to do if you’re being booted off a Netflix account

If you’ve been sharing someone else’s account for the past few years, your run of letting them foot the bill for your streaming service may be over. If they’ve said they’re planning to send you packing, one thing you can do is transfer your existing profile to a new membership you pay for yourself.

If you decide Netflix is no longer worth it, other streaming services, like Max, Disney Plus, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video, don’t currently have an extra charge for password sharing.

For more on streaming, here are CNET’s tips on how to pay less for your streaming service, and here are our picks for the best streaming services of 2023.

Technologies

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Technologies

Apple’s New Smart Home Display Delayed Until Fall Over Siri Issues

It has been nearly a year and a half since the company announced the AI-powered product.

Your home could get smarter with Apple’s Siri, but it will have to wait a few more months. Bloomberg reported the iPad-shaped AI home hub won’t be ready until September, several months after the company was hoping to launch it this spring. Apple engineers first need to complete work on a new and improved Siri assistant for the home device, code-named J490, according to Bloomberg.

Apple was hoping to release J490 this month, along with a slew of other new devices, including the iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo, MacBook Air M5, new Pro models, and iPad Air M4. Apple first teased the smart home display in November 2024.

A representative for Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Siri is Apple’s virtual assistant that uses voice recognition and AI to fulfill a variety of tasks and commands, along with intriguing uses. You might use Siri to find your iPhone — «Hey Siri, where are you?» — or to hear the weather forecast — «Siri, what will the weather be today?» Siri is available on iPhones, MacBooks and iPads. It was launched in 2011 as a feature of the iPhone 4S.

As CNET reported last month, Apple engineers have struggled to push the upgraded Siri assistant out the door. It isn’t fast enough, gets confused by complex commands and doesn’t interact well with other Apple AI models. The company is also wrestling with how much personal data to access to inform the AI, and the new Siri is not yet able to complete in-app tasks, such as finding a photo and posting it to socials, all with one command.

It has been nearly two years since Apple announced that it would give Siri a major upgrade. In the meantime, competitors like Alexa Plus and Gemini for Home have entered the marketplace.

Tech tester Jon Rettinger, whose YouTube channel has 1.66 million subscribers, says the repeated delays in upgrading Siri can «erode» confidence in Apple’s ability to keep up in the AI race.

«Apple as a whole is still one of the strongest companies on the planet. But their AI play is clearly the weakest link in an otherwise very strong chain,» Rettinger told CNET.

Rettinger said he has had issues getting Siri to complete basic commands, such as setting two alarms at the same time, and that it’s a bit of «a mess» right now.

«Having said that, the iPhone has such massive market penetration that I’m not sure it will actually matter in the end. Which is kind of wild when you think about it,» Rettinger said.

Facial recognition for residents

The hardware for the forthcoming smart home display has already been finished. It resembles an iPad and can be either attached to a wall or rest on a half-domed-shaped base, the Bloomberg report said.

The device will be equipped with facial recognition, so when residents walk up to it, they will be shown personalized data such as music preferences, news headlines, appointments, reminders, tasks and so on.

The screen interface will include a bunch of circular app icons, similar to the display on an Apple Watch. The Bloomberg report said the smart home display will be the first of several home devices by Apple. Future products include a tabletop robotic limb with a 9-inch screen, a smart security camera and a Face ID-enabled smart doorbell.