Netflix Household Verification

[arf1410]

(FYI I am not in any way advocating violating Netflix terms of service!)

I am trying to understand how the Netflix household verification, which is now rolling out in the USA, will work, and how much of a pain in the you know what it will be.

We are a household of 2 people... but 3 TVs, and numerous tablets, phones, and computers... While the TVs are always hardwired to our router, won't they each have unique IP addresses? and sometimes the phones are connected to our wifi... sometimes not. And what about when we (frequently) travel around USA. We arent home in our household, but I think we're allowed to use the netflix account, unless they are changing the terms of service. UGH

[cacophony]

Everything that connects to the router in your household via either a physical cable or wifi is using the same external ip address. That ip address is what Netflix will associate with your primary residence. Any device you want to use Netflix on will likely need to connect to that router periodically (once per month?).

[mervinj7]

(FYI I am not in any way advocating violating Netflix terms of service!)

I am trying to understand how the Netflix household verification, which is now rolling out in the USA, will work, and how much of a pain in the you know what it will be.

We are a household of 2 people... but 3 TVs, and numerous tablets, phones, and computers... While the TVs are always hardwired to our router, won't they each have unique IP addresses? and sometimes the phones are connected to our wifi... sometimes not. And what about when we (frequently) travel around USA. We arent home in our household, but I think we're allowed to use the netflix account, unless they are changing the terms of service. UGH

Seems your situation is quite typical. Why not wait and see what happens after it rolls out? I'm not too concerned for situations exactly like mine and yours.

[Katietsu]

I am active on a couple of cordcutting sites. At this point, my understanding is that the location of your TVs will be set as your default home base by Netflix. If you wish a different base location, you may set it from that location. Phones, laptops and tablets can be used from anywhere. But they must periodically be use from the home base location.

Per Netflix:

“We use information such as IP addresses, device IDs, and account activity to determine whether a device signed into your account is part of your Netflix Household.

We do not collect GPS data to try to determine the precise physical location of your devices.

If a Netflix Household hasn’t been set, we will automatically set one for you based on IP address, device IDs, and account activity.

You can always update your Netflix Household from a TV by connecting to your internet and following the steps above.”

Per Netflix:
“If you have a second home or travel frequently to the same location, follow these steps:
From the main place you watch Netflix, connect to the internet and open the Netflix app on your mobile device(s) once a month. Then take the same steps when you arrive at your second location to continue watching Netflix without interruption.”

[lostcoast2023]

Everything that connects to the router in your household via either a physical cable or wifi is using the same external ip address. That ip address is what Netflix will associate with your primary residence. Any device you want to use Netflix on will likely need to connect to that router periodically (once per month?).

If your ISP/router supports IPv6, it is very likely you have a unique IP per device.

[cacophony]

Everything that connects to the router in your household via either a physical cable or wifi is using the same external ip address. That ip address is what Netflix will associate with your primary residence. Any device you want to use Netflix on will likely need to connect to that router periodically (once per month?).

If your ISP/router supports IPv6, it is very likely you have a unique IP per device.

But wouldn't the first 64 bits (network prefix) typically be the same for all the devices in that case? And that could then be used by Netflix to identify the household?

[Admiral]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

[punkinhead]

I'll be interested to see how this works with the smart TV in our RV. It's not exactly convenient to unbolt and carry a TV into the house to connect to our home internet once a month. Plus we travel for 2+ months in the winter. If it becomes a hassle I'll cancel netflix and just turn it on for a month or two per year to catch up on things we want to watch.

[TomatoTomahto]

I'll be interested to see how this works with the smart TV in our RV. It's not exactly convenient to unbolt and carry a TV into the house to connect to our home internet once a month. Plus we travel for 2+ months in the winter. If it becomes a hassle I'll cancel netflix and just turn it on for a month or two per year to catch up on things we want to watch.

Wouldn’t connecting the TV via wifi to your home router count?

[punkinhead]

I'll be interested to see how this works with the smart TV in our RV. It's not exactly convenient to unbolt and carry a TV into the house to connect to our home internet once a month. Plus we travel for 2+ months in the winter. If it becomes a hassle I'll cancel netflix and just turn it on for a month or two per year to catch up on things we want to watch.

Wouldn’t connecting the TV via wifi to your home router count?

It would, but our home wifi doesn't reach far enough to pick up in the RV in my driveway. Plus they're saying you have to connect monthly but we travel for 2+ months at a time in the winter.

[muffins14]

(FYI I am not in any way advocating violating Netflix terms of service!)

I am trying to understand how the Netflix household verification, which is now rolling out in the USA, will work, and how much of a pain in the you know what it will be.

We are a household of 2 people... but 3 TVs, and numerous tablets, phones, and computers... While the TVs are always hardwired to our router, won't they each have unique IP addresses? and sometimes the phones are connected to our wifi... sometimes not. And what about when we (frequently) travel around USA. We arent home in our household, but I think we're allowed to use the netflix account, unless they are changing the terms of service. UGH

I think the intention from the emails posted is that traveling is intended to be totally fine. Multiple TVs in the same home would also be OK.

The not-OK situation would be sharing with another boglehead for 6 months

[muffins14]

I'll be interested to see how this works with the smart TV in our RV. It's not exactly convenient to unbolt and carry a TV into the house to connect to our home internet once a month. Plus we travel for 2+ months in the winter. If it becomes a hassle I'll cancel netflix and just turn it on for a month or two per year to catch up on things we want to watch.

Wouldn’t connecting the TV via wifi to your home router count?

It would, but our home wifi doesn't reach far enough to pick up in the RV in my driveway. Plus they're saying you have to connect monthly but we travel for 2+ months at a time in the winter.

From my sleuthing, it looks like you will have an option to “choose” or “set” that RV TV as your home while you are gone for that time, per the “You can always update your Netflix Household from a TV by connecting to your internet and following the steps above.” that the other poster quoted

[Pete3]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

There is no issue with using Netflix away from your primary location but I think the problem will be if they detect simultaneous usage at two different locations, meaning if your daughter uses Netflix at college and you continue to use it at your home.

If your daughter is the only one using the Netflix account then I wouldn't expect a problem since Netflix will see that the only usage is coming from the new location (college) not two different locations at the same time.

[LadyGeek]

This thread is now in the Personal Consumer Issues forum (Netflix).

[Gradient Descent]

I suspect Netflix has done a lot of testing internally on this issue and will focus first on the obvious offenders, like 5 IPs streaming simultaneously. This has also been tested in other countries for a long while (over a year?). So it will probably be a smooth rollout.

Of course, this is also the same company that thought Qwikster was a good idea.

[Target2019]

Netflix has tested this strategy around the world, and now it's time for the U.S. to step in line.

What Netflix has determined is that there's an initial loss of subscribers, but over some period of time Netlix ends up with more accounts as people add back in the B-level programming.

Some will drop down to an ad-supported level to save money. There's also an option to add other locations for additional fee.

Until something official comes to my account, I'll sit on the fence and deal with the outcome.

My thinking is that Netflix as a service used to be fair, and reasonable in cost. But over time other services arose, and we have some. So, I'm more inclined now to just terminate, and take advantage of the other services more. TBH, the content is not improving, in my opinion.

[Gadget]

I'm also curious how verification will work. I don't share our netflix password and it's only used for myself, my wife, and our 2 kids under 10, but we have a weekend/vacation home 1.5 hours away. I have no idea how they will differentiate that from us sharing passwords with someone else. Unless they're tracking my phone location, which brings up privacy issues...

[freakyfriday]

(FYI I am not in any way advocating violating Netflix terms of service!)

I am trying to understand how the Netflix household verification, which is now rolling out in the USA, will work, and how much of a pain in the you know what it will be.

We are a household of 2 people... but 3 TVs, and numerous tablets, phones, and computers... While the TVs are always hardwired to our router, won't they each have unique IP addresses? and sometimes the phones are connected to our wifi... sometimes not. And what about when we (frequently) travel around USA. We arent home in our household, but I think we're allowed to use the netflix account, unless they are changing the terms of service. UGH

It seems like despite early concerns all that will really matter is your IP address. I.e. your devices must connect to Netflix Servers from the "house IP" every month.

It's likely that Netflix will also consider the portability of the device. All your TVs should connect from the same IP basically all the time. Your phone, tablet and laptop will mostly connect else where but occasionally at home too.

The questions are...

- What if your home IP changes frequently possibly daily with your router getting a new IP from the ISP. A concern globally but probably not in many developed nations.

- what if that IP is a VPN server? Possibly static? Does netflix care?

- What about IPv6? Will Netflix only consider the prefix?



It seems likely that if you have a phone home VPN (most decent routers do) then this can be completely bypassed which is no bad thing. And likely out of scope for Netflix.


I don't see how many legitimate users will be impacted if I'm honest. Who still shares logins significantly?

[muffins14]

I'm also curious how verification will work. I don't share our netflix password and it's only used for myself, my wife, and our 2 kids under 10, but we have a weekend/vacation home 1.5 hours away. I have no idea how they will differentiate that from us sharing passwords with someone else. Unless they're tracking my phone location, which brings up privacy issues...

I suspect it would be like this, quoting the other poster:


Per Netflix:

“We use information such as IP addresses, device IDs, and account activity to determine whether a device signed into your account is part of your Netflix Household.

We do not collect GPS data to try to determine the precise physical location of your devices.

If a Netflix Household hasn’t been set, we will automatically set one for you based on IP address, device IDs, and account activity.

You can always update your Netflix Household from a TV by connecting to your internet and following the steps above.”

Per Netflix:
“If you have a second home or travel frequently to the same location, follow these steps:
From the main place you watch Netflix, connect to the internet and open the Netflix app on your mobile device(s) once a month. Then take the same steps when you arrive at your second location to continue watching Netflix without interruption.”

-

So it seems like you would do the stuff in the second section, like opening the app on your phone in both places. Then if you ran into issues for some reason, you would “update your Netflix household” to the vacation home, like in the first section. Should be straightforward for your use case

[Admiral]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

There is no issue with using Netflix away from your primary location but I think the problem will be if they detect simultaneous usage at two different locations, meaning if your daughter uses Netflix at college and you continue to use it at your home.

If your daughter is the only one using the Netflix account then I wouldn't expect a problem since Netflix will see that the only usage is coming from the new location (college) not two different locations at the same time.

Well sure but clearly there might be times it's used simultaneously. Though tbh she should be studying all the time!

[TomatoTomahto]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

There is no issue with using Netflix away from your primary location but I think the problem will be if they detect simultaneous usage at two different locations, meaning if your daughter uses Netflix at college and you continue to use it at your home.

If your daughter is the only one using the Netflix account then I wouldn't expect a problem since Netflix will see that the only usage is coming from the new location (college) not two different locations at the same time.

We have legitimate (I think) reasons for 3 household members to be using our account in different locations at the same time - me at home, wife in our apartment, and son at college. What would the Netflix verdict be on that?

[Target2019]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

There is no issue with using Netflix away from your primary location but I think the problem will be if they detect simultaneous usage at two different locations, meaning if your daughter uses Netflix at college and you continue to use it at your home.

If your daughter is the only one using the Netflix account then I wouldn't expect a problem since Netflix will see that the only usage is coming from the new location (college) not two different locations at the same time.

We have legitimate (I think) reasons for 3 household members to be using our account in different locations at the same time - me at home, wife in our apartment, and son at college. What would the Netflix verdict be on that?

You will be paying more, I'm afraid. Each location has a different router or service with a different public IP address.

[muffins14]

My daughter is in college 8 months of the year and at home 4 months. It will be interesting to see if they try to cut her off come September, once she's no longer part of the "household."

Since nothing prevents someone in the household from (legitimately) using Netflix on a non-TV device that's away from the house (vacation, anyone?) clearly there is some litmus test for how often this can happen.

There is no issue with using Netflix away from your primary location but I think the problem will be if they detect simultaneous usage at two different locations, meaning if your daughter uses Netflix at college and you continue to use it at your home.

If your daughter is the only one using the Netflix account then I wouldn't expect a problem since Netflix will see that the only usage is coming from the new location (college) not two different locations at the same time.

We have legitimate (I think) reasons for 3 household members to be using our account in different locations at the same time - me at home, wife in our apartment, and son at college. What would the Netflix verdict be on that?

My guess is that if you visit your wife, or your wife visits you at least every 4-5 weeks it might fall under this:

Per Netflix:
“If you have a second home or travel frequently to the same location, follow these steps:
From the main place you watch Netflix, connect to the internet and open the Netflix app on your mobile device(s) once a month. Then take the same steps when you arrive at your second location to continue watching Netflix without interruption.”

For the son in college, it sounds like it depends on how often they visit too. I’d expect more details on how it behaves will come out once people get some collective experience, or someone could call them and ask.

I just share with my partner at home, and when we travel we use the hotel or Airbnb TV, so our use case isn’t as interesting

[Admiral]

IMHO Netflix's content is not worth paying two subscriptions per month. It's pretty thin. I get it discounted through my Comcast (extortionate) cable package but I'd question its value at $15/mo. We already pay for AppleTV+, Hulu/Disney/ESPN+, Prime, ad infinitum. It adds up!

[TomatoTomahto]

My guess is that if you visit your wife, or your wife visits you at least every 4-5 weeks it might fall under this:

Per Netflix:
“If you have a second home or travel frequently to the same location, follow these steps:
From the main place you watch Netflix, connect to the internet and open the Netflix app on your mobile device(s) once a month. Then take the same steps when you arrive at your second location to continue watching Netflix without interruption.”

For the son in college, it sounds like it depends on how often they visit too. I’d expect more details on how it behaves will come out once people get some collective experience, or someone could call them and ask.

I just share with my partner at home, and when we travel we use the hotel or Airbnb TV, so our use case isn’t as interesting

Well, we visit each other much more than every 4 weeks
That said, we never watch Netflix on “mobile devices.” Our apartment has a 55” screen, and I find that uncomfortably small; zero chance I would watch on my phone. But, it sounds like I just have to connect to Netflix on a mobile device in both locations.

I have a feeling that our son will have to get his own Netflix account; there are many times when he doesn’t visit for a few months.

[Target2019]

Just noticed this on NPR.

Netflix has officially begun its plan to make users pay extra for password sharing https://www.npr.org/2023/05/24/11778480 ... rd-sharing

The plan has been to force additional payment for other locations. So it looks like $7.99 per month for additional location. Our current bill is for $21.31 per month, and that's ad-free.

[illumination]

If this becomes an issue, I plan to cancel. The whole reason I bought the "premium" package with additional streaming capacity was so I could share with other people. It was encouraged as a way to share imo. And one of the biggest reasons I've kept it is if other people might want to use it.

If it gets locked down to just my household, we barely use NetFlix and I won't be "worried" if I'm canceling a family members account. I'm just not really happy with Netflix content anyway, has been quantity over quality. I use the other streaming services way more.

I know NetFlix has been "threatening" this for a while (while also winking and encouraging sharing) so my plan is to actually see what it looks like in practice and then decide.

[JayhawkGolfer]

Interested to see how this plays out with my kids when they are at college or their moms house. Head of household works for taxes when my kiddos are away, maybe Netflix and other services should follow suit.

[pizzy]

I'm just going to take a wait and see approach and make decisions based on my actual experience using the service under the "new rules"..

I'd recommend others do the same.

[Bcdkgf]

If this becomes an issue, I plan to cancel. The whole reason I bought the "premium" package with additional streaming capacity was so I could share with other people. It was encouraged as a way to share imo. And one of the biggest reasons I've kept it is if other people might want to use it.

If it gets locked down to just my household, we barely use NetFlix and I won't be "worried" if I'm canceling a family members account. I'm just not really happy with Netflix content anyway, has been quantity over quality. I use the other streaming services way more.

I know NetFlix has been "threatening" this for a while (while also winking and encouraging sharing) so my plan is to actually see what it looks like in practice and then decide.

Our son already pays extra (Premium) for us and I have offered to give him additional money to cover this new charge for us. I hope he will accept it. There's nothing we're watching on Netflix right now, if push came to shove I would drop it. Our essential streaming channel is Paramount Plus. Star Trek, Sheldon, Ghosts, NCIS's and all without commercials. Netflix does not compare.

[muffins14]

If this becomes an issue, I plan to cancel. The whole reason I bought the "premium" package with additional streaming capacity was so I could share with other people. It was encouraged as a way to share imo. And one of the biggest reasons I've kept it is if other people might want to use it.

If it gets locked down to just my household, we barely use NetFlix and I won't be "worried" if I'm canceling a family members account. I'm just not really happy with Netflix content anyway, has been quantity over quality. I use the other streaming services way more.

I know NetFlix has been "threatening" this for a while (while also winking and encouraging sharing) so my plan is to actually see what it looks like in practice and then decide.

Our son already pays extra (Premium) for us and I have offered to give him additional money to cover this new charge for us. I hope he will accept it. There's nothing we're watching on Netflix right now, if push came to shove I would drop it. Our essential streaming channel is Paramount Plus. Star Trek, Sheldon, Ghosts, NCIS's and all without commercials. Netflix does not compare.

Son could probably downgrade to a cheaper plan and add you as the “extra” person for the same total price he is paying today for premium

[rob]

They cannot use IP only and they will likely never say explicitly since they don't want people reversing the criteria.... BUT

If they hit me with this nonsense I'll cancel and I can guarantee that I will not be one that moves back after time. They are already marginal utility with the vastly reduced catalog compared to the past and I don't have any NF only series I watch, so making a noise is not going to end well. They are betting I'm the minority.

[Bcdkgf]

If this becomes an issue, I plan to cancel. The whole reason I bought the "premium" package with additional streaming capacity was so I could share with other people. It was encouraged as a way to share imo. And one of the biggest reasons I've kept it is if other people might want to use it.

If it gets locked down to just my household, we barely use NetFlix and I won't be "worried" if I'm canceling a family members account. I'm just not really happy with Netflix content anyway, has been quantity over quality. I use the other streaming services way more.

I know NetFlix has been "threatening" this for a while (while also winking and encouraging sharing) so my plan is to actually see what it looks like in practice and then decide.

Our son already pays extra (Premium) for us and I have offered to give him additional money to cover this new charge for us. I hope he will accept it. There's nothing we're watching on Netflix right now, if push came to shove I would drop it. Our essential streaming channel is Paramount Plus. Star Trek, Sheldon, Ghosts, NCIS's and all without commercials. Netflix does not compare.

Son could probably downgrade to a cheaper plan and add you as the “extra” person for the same total price he is paying today for premium

Cheaper plan is low definition, right? We all have huge TVs. It's part of his package with his cell phone plan. And there is his sister also. So two extra people is not pocket change, I am sure his sister (our daughter) will also give him the extra money. It is still cheaper then getting a high def plan individually. She loves Bridgerton.

[pizzy]

They cannot use IP only and they will likely never say explicitly since they don't want people reversing the criteria.... BUT

If they hit me with this nonsense I'll cancel and I can guarantee that I will not be one that moves back after time. They are already marginal utility with the vastly reduced catalog compared to the past and I don't have any NF only series I watch, so making a noise is not going to end well. They are betting I'm the minority.

They expect many cancellations. They are ok with that.

During the pilot in Spain, about 1,000,000 people canceled in 3 months and it was considered successful.

[illumination]

They cannot use IP only and they will likely never say explicitly since they don't want people reversing the criteria.... BUT

If they hit me with this nonsense I'll cancel and I can guarantee that I will not be one that moves back after time. They are already marginal utility with the vastly reduced catalog compared to the past and I don't have any NF only series I watch, so making a noise is not going to end well. They are betting I'm the minority.

They expect many cancellations. They are ok with that.

During the pilot in Spain, about 1,000,000 people canceled in 3 months and it was considered successful.

And maybe it works out for them, but I think the US market, it becomes a much bigger deal for their share price if say a 20%+ of your US subscribers cancel in a few months.

My guess it will not be an immediate exodus, but people finally decide to start trimming their streaming subscriptions when they cant share and have to pay more, and their Netflix account gets put in the front of the line. Their lack of quality content though is what I'm more agitated about.

Ultimately, Netflix isnt going anywhere, but the share price has basically been stagnant over the last 5 years and the price is about half of what it was at its high. It's clearly not the growth story it once was and will likely have far less people using their service.

[rob]

They cannot use IP only and they will likely never say explicitly since they don't want people reversing the criteria.... BUT

If they hit me with this nonsense I'll cancel and I can guarantee that I will not be one that moves back after time. They are already marginal utility with the vastly reduced catalog compared to the past and I don't have any NF only series I watch, so making a noise is not going to end well. They are betting I'm the minority.

They expect many cancellations. They are ok with that.

During the pilot in Spain, about 1,000,000 people canceled in 3 months and it was considered successful.

Yeah that is fine.... but if I'm not smallish minority then they will have issues. Also agree above that a big subscriber hit in the US is an entirely different thing than Spain. I expect they will edge in and get the heavy sharers first then watch as they get further into it.

In the end, I use it in several location but I've started getting "friendly" emails (but not your stealing accusations - yet) due to logins from hotel rooms via their own QR code mechanism - so made me notice. I don't think ME using it at different locations is "stealing" and I don't care what they or others want to call it.

[prd1982]

They cannot use IP only and they will likely never say explicitly since they don't want people reversing the criteria.... BUT

If they hit me with this nonsense I'll cancel and I can guarantee that I will not be one that moves back after time. They are already marginal utility with the vastly reduced catalog compared to the past and I don't have any NF only series I watch, so making a noise is not going to end well. They are betting I'm the minority.

They expect many cancellations. They are ok with that.

During the pilot in Spain, about 1,000,000 people canceled in 3 months and it was considered successful.

You have only given 1/2 of the data. How many people joined?

[lostcoast2023]

Everything that connects to the router in your household via either a physical cable or wifi is using the same external ip address. That ip address is what Netflix will associate with your primary residence. Any device you want to use Netflix on will likely need to connect to that router periodically (once per month?).

If your ISP/router supports IPv6, it is very likely you have a unique IP per device.

But wouldn't the first 64 bits (network prefix) typically be the same for all the devices in that case? And that could then be used by Netflix to identify the household?

I don't know how Netflix is actually doing this detection, but yes, if you have a /64 from Comcast, the prefix would be the same for each device on your network.

[arf1410]

Netflix is entitled to define one household as your living room, and another household as your bedroom, if they want. College students are typically still part of your household for legal, tax, and residency status... even though they may sleep elsewhere 8 months of the year. And most college students keep their permanent address with the parents.

[TomatoTomahto]

Netflix is entitled to define one household as your living room, and another household as your bedroom, if they want.

Sure, but that's not a reasonable definition of household. The government, for example, would define my wife and me as a household.

Just think what Netflix could do to the "household formation" statistics

Household formation is the net change in the number of households. It is a key driver of the demand for new housing units and is closely linked to residential construction

[Admiral]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

[freakyfriday]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

[Admiral]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

This is an incorrect interpretation of their rules. I am specifically paying for multiple screens. I don't pay one gas bill to have my gas delivered to two locations, or one electric bill to keep the lights on at two homes.

The usage is not based on location. There is no rule that prevents me from taking my tablet to the beach and streaming Netflix all day long, even if my wife is home watching Netflix. Therefore, there is no rule that prevents my child from doing the same, at the beach or in her dorm room, on occasion.

[freakyfriday]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

This is an incorrect interpretation of their rules. I am specifically paying for multiple screens. I don't pay one gas bill to have my gas delivered to two locations, or one electric bill to keep the lights on at two homes.

The usage is not based on location. There is no rule that prevents me from taking my tablet to the beach and streaming Netflix all day long, even if my wife is home watching Netflix. Therefore, there is no rule that prevents my child from doing the same, at the beach or in her dorm room, on occasion.

I have an extra phone line. I paid for two. Does that mean the second one could be in Spain?

If I have cable TV you can pay for multiple viewers at once. Could that second output be in my neighbours house?

Everyone is someone's son/daughter. Why just yours? Surely netflix just sells half as many subs. Why not grandkids? Great grandkids? Maybe there's finally a use for those 5 screen subscriptions!

[Admiral]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

This is an incorrect interpretation of their rules. I am specifically paying for multiple screens. I don't pay one gas bill to have my gas delivered to two locations, or one electric bill to keep the lights on at two homes.

The usage is not based on location. There is no rule that prevents me from taking my tablet to the beach and streaming Netflix all day long, even if my wife is home watching Netflix. Therefore, there is no rule that prevents my child from doing the same, at the beach or in her dorm room, on occasion.

I have an extra phone line. I paid for two. Does that mean the second one could be in Spain?

If I have cable TV you can pay for multiple viewers at once. Could that second output be in my neighbours house?

Everyone is someone's son/daughter. Why just yours? Surely netflix just sells half as many subs. Why not grandkids? Great grandkids? Maybe there's finally a use for those 5 screen subscriptions!

I pay for streaming to multiple screens. The screens do not need to be in one location. Case closed.

[freakyfriday]

I pay extra to Netflix (via Comcast) to watch on multiple screens as opposed to a single screen (which is included in my cable package). As far as I'm concerned, that gives me permission for my college student to watch Netflix on their screen when they are not at home. After all, I've paid for simultaneous viewers.

Where the screen is physically located strikes me as irrelevant.

Perhaps with this arrangement I won't get the C&D email...

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

This is an incorrect interpretation of their rules. I am specifically paying for multiple screens. I don't pay one gas bill to have my gas delivered to two locations, or one electric bill to keep the lights on at two homes.

The usage is not based on location. There is no rule that prevents me from taking my tablet to the beach and streaming Netflix all day long, even if my wife is home watching Netflix. Therefore, there is no rule that prevents my child from doing the same, at the beach or in her dorm room, on occasion.

I have an extra phone line. I paid for two. Does that mean the second one could be in Spain?

If I have cable TV you can pay for multiple viewers at once. Could that second output be in my neighbours house?

Everyone is someone's son/daughter. Why just yours? Surely netflix just sells half as many subs. Why not grandkids? Great grandkids? Maybe there's finally a use for those 5 screen subscriptions!

I pay for streaming to multiple screens. The screens do not need to be in one location. Case closed.

Netflix terms clearly disagrees. And you agreed to their terms they didn't agree to yours

I do think everyone's making mountains her from mole hills. I believe the intent is for Netflix to be able to agree better terms with distributors claiming to enforce their long standing "one household" licensing. Same thing happened with anti-VPN actions.

[Admiral]

I appreciate the sentiment but it makes little sense.

Why can't he also use your internet, gas, water and electricity despite not being in the house?

Why just your son? If I were at dinner I could watch your TV couldn't I? Why doesn't your second screen apply to my TV?

The answer to all this is of course, they add limitations to make money. You could of course both by a single screen subscription each. But that costs more.

This is an incorrect interpretation of their rules. I am specifically paying for multiple screens. I don't pay one gas bill to have my gas delivered to two locations, or one electric bill to keep the lights on at two homes.

The usage is not based on location. There is no rule that prevents me from taking my tablet to the beach and streaming Netflix all day long, even if my wife is home watching Netflix. Therefore, there is no rule that prevents my child from doing the same, at the beach or in her dorm room, on occasion.

I have an extra phone line. I paid for two. Does that mean the second one could be in Spain?

If I have cable TV you can pay for multiple viewers at once. Could that second output be in my neighbours house?

Everyone is someone's son/daughter. Why just yours? Surely netflix just sells half as many subs. Why not grandkids? Great grandkids? Maybe there's finally a use for those 5 screen subscriptions!

I pay for streaming to multiple screens. The screens do not need to be in one location. Case closed.

Netflix terms clearly disagrees. And you agreed to their terms they didn't agree to yours

I do think everyone's making mountains her from mole hills. I believe the intent is for Netflix to be able to agree better terms with distributors claiming to enforce their long standing "one household" licensing. Same thing happened with anti-VPN actions.

That's incorrect. Their terms (try to) define a household but they do not use (or do not care to use) location-based data as part of that definition. It's posted upthread. That's why you can stream to your tablet at the beach, or watch Netflix at the office.

[stoptothink]

We currently have "family" plans for most of the streaming services and the cost is shared among my parents and several siblings. I believe technically the Netflix account is in my mom's name. If this is the new policy, won't be much of an issue doing without Netflix.

[freakyfriday]

That's incorrect. Their terms (try to) define a household but they do not use (or do not care to use) location-based data as part of that definition. It's posted upthread. That's why you can stream to your tablet at the beach, or watch Netflix at the office.

It's right here https://help.netflix.com/en/node/124925

Household is a set of devices connected to the internet from the same place. Your definition is pure fiction. But I wont be replying again on this chain, spread misinformation as much as you like. Not even Netflix really cares if their behaviour on VPNs has been anything to go by. Once they secure rights they restart turning a blind eye.

[circlespinner]

Does anyone know when or if Netflix changed terms of service to include the Household limitation? I have a shared T-mobile account with my adult son and we have been sharing the two concurrent screens in the Standard Netflix Plan included with our T-Mobile service. To me one or the other is fair, but not both limitations. Now we can no longer benefit from the 2nd screen included with the Netflix Standard Plan. Hopefully T-Mobile at some point offers the option of 2 Basic Netflix plans (one for each line) instead of 1 Standard Plan per account.

I will also note that very few homes are assigned static IP's. Your IP address can change for a myriad of everyday reasons, perhaps from a reboot, equipment change, or short power failure. When that occurs, it appears you need to go through the Netflix Update process to redefine your household. Keep those instructions handy.