If you’re guilty of sharing your Netflix password and are worried about having to pay for a separate account, you can relax: Netflix’s CEO says you’re not going to get busted.
During the streaming video company’s third-quarter earnings webcast Monday, CEO Reed Hastings said Netflix doesn’t have any plans to penalize subscribers.
“In terms of [password sharing], no plans on making any changes there,” Hastings said, according to CNBC. “Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with, because there’s so much legitimate password sharing, like you sharing with your spouse, with your kids …. So there’s no bright line, and we’re doing fine as is.
This isn’t the first time Hastings has said it’s okay to share your password. But his most recent reiteration comes as a mild relief after a ruling by a federal appeals court this past summer theoretically made sharing passwords a federal crime. The ruling could make millions of people who share them “unwitting federal criminals.” But it must be noted that the U.S. Government would rarely, if ever, prosecute for giving someone your Netflix login.
Shares of Netflix soared more than 18% Tuesday after Netflix posted blockbuster results late Monday. Hastings credited hit shows like Stranger Things for the strong showing. The results are vastly different than last quarter, when the stock dropped due to weak subscriber numbers.