Disney plans to follow in Netflix's footsteps and begin cracking down on password-sharing next year.
"We're actively exploring ways to address account sharing and the best options for paying subscribers to share their accounts with friends and family," Disney CEO Bob Iger said during the company's earnings call on Wednesday. "Later this year, we will begin to update our subscriber agreements with additional terms and our sharing policies."
The CEO said the company will roll out the new policy in 2024 as the company continues to work on its pricing and timing for the change.
Iger's announcement comes after Netflix began a crackdown on password-sharing earlier this year. In May, the streaming company began charging US subscribers an additional $8 per month to add users to their accounts that lived outside of their household with some success. JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth said in June that he anticipates the clampdown will allow the company to add 33 million households that had previously been involved in password-sharing. And Iger has said that Disney can make more money per user from ad-supported tiers than ad-free ones, as has Netflix.
The Disney CEO told investors during the earnings call that the company already has the tools to monitor password-sharing between households and says there are a "significant" number of users engaging in the practice.
The company also announced price increases for its ad-free Disney+ service to $13.99 per month, up from $10.99 a month, and increased prices for its ad-free Hulu service to $17.99 per month, up from $14.99 a month. The new prices will take effect on October 12, the company said. However, the ad-supported plans for Hulu and Disney+ will each remain $7.99 per month.
Disney raised prices for Disney+ by $3 per month last year. Iger noted in May that Disney saw a "relatively small" loss of subscribers as a result of the price increase.
