Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

People sharing streaming passwords is costing the industry $500 million a year

Are you using someone else’s Netflix or HBO Go password? Then you might owe part of the $500 million that credential sharing cost the streaming industry last year

According to a report from market research firm Parks Associates, some 6 percent of U.S. households are piggybacking off of other people’s accounts for streaming services (i.e. Netflix, HBO Go, Amazon Prim, Hulu, etc.).

“Live-streaming usage has garnered media attention recently, but credential sharing is also a popular form of piracy in the connected world, one that has received varying responses from service providers and content owners,” said Glenn Hower, a research analyst at Parks Associates. “Credential sharing has a measurable impact on video services, particularly in the OTT [over-the-top] video service area, where young subscribers are active. The impact on OTT video revenues is especially troublesome as OTT providers are investing large sums of money to boost their original content offerings.”

From the article "People sharing streaming passwords is costing the industry $500 million a year" by Scott Sutton.

Previously In The News

As ‘Game of Thrones’ Returns, Is Sharing Your HBO Password O.K.?

The effect on the companies’ bottom lines remains unclear, but a study by Parks Associates, a research group, found that sharing cost the streaming video industry $500 million in 2015. One reason t...

Could streaming giants start to clamp down on password sharing?

The major concern for cyber security companies like Synamedia is how password sharing can turn into true content piracy ? stealing streaming shows and movies and reselling them for profit. If you k...

91% of viewers like streaming aggregation, survey says

Not only are consumers saying video aggregators are simple to navigate across, but they also value having a single bill for all their apps. OTT bundling is a key source of revenue for pay TV and other...

Deeper Dive—Who would buy DirecTV?

Although DirecTV is losing subscribers at a rapid pace, it’s not exactly a lost cause. Brett Sappington, senior research director and principal analyst at Parks Associates, said the satellite operator...