If you have had trouble getting into your Netflix profile over the past couple of weeks, there is a reason for that. The streaming company has started asking for extra information from people who use shared accounts.
The new rule took effect on June 15. Netflix confirmed that every profile on an account now needs its own email address. When you click on a secondary profile, a message pops up asking you to add an email. The company says this makes it easier to sign in, recover your account, and get better suggestions.
You can still log in with the main account owner’s details. But if you want to use or set up a separate profile, you will have to give a unique email for that profile. Netflix allows up to five profiles per account, which is useful for families who want to keep their viewing history and recommendations separate.
The company has been tightening its rules around account sharing for a while now. If their system thinks you are not at your main home address, it may ask for a verification code or block access. This is all part of Netflix’s plan to get more people to pay for their own accounts. Since they started this push, more users have signed up for the cheaper plan that includes advertisements. At the same time, there are subscribers who left.
These changes can be frustrating for people who travel often, own a second home, or have children away at school who share the family account.
There is a small positive side, though. With each profile linked to its own email, users can now pick their own language, sound, and display settings. That means you do not have to ask the account owner to change things for you every time.