Sharing Disney+? Get ready to pay extra
Beginning this week, Disney+ subscribers will notice a new option: the ability to add extra members to their accounts – though it’ll come with an additional fee. This option will be available in the following regions:
- The US
- Canada
- Costa Rica
- Guatemala
- Europe
- Asia-Pacific region
Your Disney+ subscription is intended for use within your household and includes devices linked to your primary residence and the people living there. So, now, if you want to share Disney+ with someone outside your household, you can add them as an Extra Member for an additional monthly fee.
In the US, primary Disney+ users will need to pay an extra $6.99 per month for Disney+ Basic and $9.99 per month for Disney+ Premium to add an extra member. Each account can only have one additional member slot.
You will notice a new option to add an extra member. | Image credit – Disney
For those outside your household, Disney+ is offering another option: they can start their own subscription, of course. To make the switch easier, Disney+ allows users to transfer their existing profile to a new account, keeping all their watch history and settings intact.
Moreover, Disney+ has made it clear that if you’re away from home, you can still watch on your devices without a problem. If you’re using a different TV, a message might pop up saying, “This TV doesn’t seem to be part of the Household for this account.” At that point, you can either tap “I’m Away From Home” or, if you’ve moved, choose “Update Household” to refresh the location. Both options will prompt a one-time passcode sent to the email tied to the account.
The crackdown on password sharing isn’t the only shake-up happening at Disney+. This October, Disney+, along with Hulu and ESPN+, will bump up their prices. The ad-supported Disney+ plan will jump from $7.99 to $9.99 a month, while the ad-free version will rise from $13.99 to $15.99.
In my opinion, offering paid sharing is a smart move by Disney+, especially with these price hikes on the horizon. Right now, the $6.99 extra for sharing on the Basic plan seems pointless, given that the current subscription is just a dollar more. However, with the prices going up, paying for sharing could become a more attractive option.
