Netflix has not yet confirmed its plans to stop password sharing

Based on info Netflix’s support pages, a report published by The streamable appeared to confirm details of how it will roll out anti-password sharing features in the US and elsewhere. However, Netflix hasn̵[ads1]7;t announced the details of its plan yet or what it might look like when it rolls out further this year.

Netflix spokesperson Kumiko Hidaka said in a statement provided to The streamable and The Verge that “For a short time on Tuesday, a Help Center article containing information relevant only to Chile, Costa Rica and Peru was published in other countries. We have since updated it.”

We already know that Netflix plans to roll out password sharing more widely in the coming months. Netflix has been testing the program with subscribers in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru since early last year, where it began requiring users to pay extra for additional users located outside the subscriber’s primary household.

In its report, The streamable citing this Netflix Help Center page as the source for the information. The information included in the article for US customers – and visible on an Internet Archive page taken yesterday – does not match what is listed today. Right now that information is only available on the pages for the Central and South American test countries.

Hidaka explained in an email message to The Verge that the text displayed is applicable where Netflix launched its “Extra Member” offer in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru in March, but not in the US or other countries where it is not available. As far as what else has been confirmed so far, she pointed to Netflix’s earnings statement from January, saying that “Later in Q1, we expect to start rolling out paid sharing more broadly.”

The rules on the archived page (and the pages for the additional member-enabled countries) state that only the people in your primary household can use a single Netflix subscription. For multiple devices to use a single subscription, Netflix says you must “connect to Wi-Fi at your primary location, open the Netflix app or website, and watch something at least once every 31 days” on the devices you and your household members use to watch Netflix, to stop device blocks on “trusted devices” that you can use anywhere.

The US-centric site we have access to today says that “people who don’t live in your household must use their own account to watch Netflix.” That’s in contrast to the page for Costa Rica, Chile, and Peru, which says you must add an additional member for anyone using your plan outside of your household. It also adds that it will use your IP address, device ID and account activity to determine when someone else is using your account.

Similarly, the available US support page on what Netflix considers a “household” is very different from the pages in Costa Rica, Chile and Peru. On the US site, the company only describes the idea of ​​a household as “people who live in the same place as the account owner.” Meanwhile, the pages for the three South and Central American countries provide more details on how to change your primary household, sign out of accounts on devices in different locations, or what might cause a device to be blocked.

Here’s a glimpse of what to expect when Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing goes into effect globally, and what kind of headache it could cause for people who just need to watch from multiple locations or people who love to use VPNs for their own privacy. home.

But when it comes to how Netflix will try to push users in the US or other countries to buy sub-accounts for all the exes, cousins, ex-roommates and complete strangers who take a turn on our streaming accounts, it’s not clear to tell.

Update February 2, 3:37 PM ET: Added statement from Netflix about the updates to the support pages.