CES 2019: New Software Aims To Crack Down On Netflix Account Sharing

Sharing your Netflix account may be a little more challenging in the future thanks to new software that was unveiled by Synamedia at the CES 2019 technology show in Las Vegas this week.

The software maker created the software, Credentials Sharing Insight, to crack down on account sharing with streaming services, making it possible to track if a user has given their streaming service password to someone else.

The software uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, and behavioral analytics to look for activity it deems potentially fraudulent. The technology is able to identify, monitor, and analyze password-sharing activities on streaming accounts using a real-time dashboard that will highlight sharing activity complete with alerts and trend analysis.

The fraudulent behavior can also generate a message that, in some instances, asks a Netflix or other account holder if they would like to upgrade to the streaming service’s premium option that includes sharing. The software can also detect if a password is sold through for-profit-organizations and will shut the account down it is has been obtained this way.

Synamedia’s security team designed the software to understand how and where to look for activity that might be suspicious, integrating it with behavioral models for better understanding.

The company is billing Credentials Sharing Insight as a new revenue-generating option for streaming service companies as it is a “way to market their service to new audiences.”

According to Synamedia, research from Magid has shown that 26 percent of millennials give out their password to others to use video-streaming services. The company also cited Parks Associates, which predicted that in 2021, a total of $9.9 billion of pay-TV revenues and $1.2 billion of over-the-top (OTT) revenues will be lost to password sharing.

“Casual credentials sharing is becoming too expensive to ignore,” Jean Marc Racine, CPO and GM EMEA of Synamedia, said. “Our new solution gives operators the ability to take action. Many casual users will be happy to pay an additional fee for a premium, shared service with a greater number of concurrent users. It’s a great way to keep honest people honest while benefiting from an incremental revenue stream.”

The Credential Sharing Insight software is available as a cloud or on-premise offering. It is already being used in trials with a number of pay-TV operations, Synamedia said.