After a delay, Netflix’s password sharing crackdown is reaching U.S. and international subscribers. After experiencing cancellations in regions where it had already implemented “paid sharing,” the streamer delayed the debut till the summer. U.S. Netflix consumers must either remove people from their account or pay $7.99/month for an additional membership for non-household members.

In weeks and months, many of worldwide markets will undergo similar transformations.

Current members can examine which devices are signed into their account and remove unwanted ones, as well as reset their password, to make this transfer smoother.

A “Transfer Profile” feature lets Netflix account sharers move their viewing history and watchlist to their own account.

Netflix informed investors that despite early cancellations, the password enforcement will benefit its long-term development and financial health.

Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said the password enforcement in its first supported markets was similar to how subscribers reacted to pricing increases during its first-quarter earnings.

“We see an initial cancel reaction and then we build out of that, both in terms of membership and revenue as borrowers sign up for their own Netflix accounts and existing members purchase that extra member facility for folks that they want to share with,” Peters told investors on the April earnings call. “First of all, it was a strong validation to see consistent results in these new countries, because there are different market characteristics different from each other and also from the original Latin American rollout countries,” he said.

Netflix tested the feature in Latin America before adding Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, and Spain this year. It will reach more global markets today, including Brazil, Bolivia, Belize, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, the Philippines, Malaysia, Israel, Thailand, Taiwan, Switzerland, Sweden, and others.

The corporation may have postponed the crackdown in Q1 to avoid hurting net additions. Last quarter, the corporation added 1.75 million global customers, below Wall Street’s 3 million projection, to 232.5 million accounts.

It announced at results that U.S. members would receive the password-sharing adjustments “on or before” June 30. Netflix may have accelerated the timing.

Netflix revealed on its blog today that it will email U.S. account sharers.

“One household per Netflix account,” the firm advises. “Everyone living in that household can use Netflix wherever they are—at home, on the go, on holiday—and take advantage of new features like Transfer Profile and Manage Access and Devices,” the post adds.

The email, labeled “An update on sharing,” lists options and links to support documentation.

Netflix explains in a press email that it is “now starting to roll out updates to sharing to countries around the world, including the U.S.”

Netflix has yet to see the effects of a password crackdown in the U.S., where it faces increased competition for users’ time and money.

Today, HBO Max becomes Max, a new service that combines HBO and Discovery+ content, doubling the amount of programming. Paramount+ will add Showtime next month on June 27. Disney plans to merge Disney+ and Hulu into one app. Subscribers get more content with some price increases. Netflix is charging more for the same.

The insanely successful Last of Us adaptation is caught in the crossfire of the Writers Guild of America strike. The hit show’s co-creator and showrunner, Craig Mazin, was seen on the picket line supporting the strike, halting season two casting (GQ has a great primer).

Variety reports that casting preparations will be halted until the strike ends. Due to a lack of scriptwriters, the casting team has reportedly asked actors to read lines from The Last of Us: Part II, the game that will inspire the upcoming season.

Craig Mazin had recently been seen supporting the WGA! He is not currently doing any writing or producing work including being involved in casting on Season 2 of The Last of Us HBO! pic.twitter.com/ZQEc6eqQ7H

— DomTheBomb (@DomTheBombYT) May 12, 2023

It’s too early to tell, but Vancouver shooting is expected to resume in early 2024. The first season’s seventh episode, “Left Behind,” was written by Naughty Dog co-president Neil Druckmann, who also created the IP. Mazin wrote the rest. They co-wrote the series premiere and finale.

HBO’s The Last of Us: Will the writer’s strike last? Take care of your writers—Lost and Heroes never recovered from the last WGA strike.

Well, this movie has certainly come together quickly, just like the automobiles the franchise is centered around. In truth, Gran Turismo adaptation directed by Neil Blomkamp has already wrapped up filming and is in post-production ahead of its global theatrical release on August 11, 2023. Do you want to see a brief teaser? To view the trailer, click above.

Orlando Bloom and David Harbour provide some comments in this 60-second clip, which also includes a few brief film snippets. In essence, this is based on the real-life experiences of Jann Mardenborough, who won the 2011 GT Academy competition and later found success as a racing car driver.

In the few photos that were displayed, the cinematography seemed amazing, therefore it is obvious that this would look stunning on a large screen. During Sony’s CES press conference, Blomkamp briefly discussed how he is employing the company’s cutting-edge cameras to not only get stunning close-ups from within the car’s cockpit but also to imitate some of the game’s angles, as shown in the trailer.