Why the end of password sharing may soon be near

It’s OK to admit if you use the password for a family member’s or friend’s account when it comes to Netflix or similar streaming apps. Unfortunately, that ability to share a common account among multiple users may be ending soon with a software startup called Synamedia.

The United Kingdom-based video software provider announced this week ahead of the CES 2019 tech conference that it will be launching a platform that helps streaming providers like Netflix start individualizing accounts and make money off those people who are sharing the apps.

“Casual credentials sharing is becoming too expensive to ignore,” said Synamedia CPO Jean Marc Racine in a press release. “Our new solution gives operators the ability to take action. Many casual users will be happy to pay an additional fee for a premium, shared service with a greater number of concurrent users. It’s a great way to keep honest people honest while benefiting from an incremental revenue stream.”

A statement from Synamedia cited media research firm Magid, which found that some 26 percent of millennials share account information for video streaming apps. It added that in two years, $9.9 billion of TV revenues could be lost to credentials sharing.

Titled Synamedia Credentials Sharing Insight, a test version of the program is already in the market with certain TV operators, available in both cloud and on-site.

The video software company already works with some 330 million clients and claims to help protect more than $100 billion in revenue.