Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ To Ban Password Sharing

Disney is following the same path as rival Netflix by clamping down on password sharing on its streaming platform.

On Wednesday in an email to Hulu members, the company highlighted that it would begin to add restrictions on account sharing outside of the household of the subscriber starting on March 14.

The user agreement Hulu has in place, as well as the agreements for Disney+ and ESPN+, clearly restricts users from pretending to be another person by using their password and username.

The agreement terms, which were last updated on all three platforms on Jan. 25, state, “You agree not to impersonate or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity, including using another person’s username, password or other account information, or another person’s name or likeness, or provide false details for a parent or guardian.”

Last August, there was a subtle indication by Disney CEO Bob Iger that the company has plans to get to the bottom of the password-sharing problem in 2024.

On Disney’s fiscal third-quarter earnings call, Iger said, “We certainly have established this as a real priority. We actually think that there’s an opportunity here to help us grow our business.”

On Feb. 7, Iger is expected to talk on Disney’s fiscal first-quarter earnings call, which could give more information on plans to address this issue.

The change in user agreement terms by Disney comes into place following Netflix’s success for two consecutive quarters after its password-sharing clampdown, which led to the streaming company enjoying a growth of 13 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter, as impersonators were forced to purchase their own accounts.

Disney has given consideration to its communications strategy with the password-sharing restrictions coming into place on March 14 by allowing subscribers time to adjust their streaming habits before the shift to reduce potential backlash.