If Netflix does it, the rest follow.

Last month, Max became the latest major streaming platform to announce a password-sharing crackdown. On April 22, 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery announced its new Extra Member Add-On feature for U.S. Max subscribers; it costs $7.99/month regardless of which tier the primary account pays for. Thats $1 more than the entry-level price to Netflixs own precedent-setting program, and $1 less than Netflixs ad-free add-on.

Extra Member Add-On and Profile Transfer are two key Max advancements, designed to help viewers with a new way to enjoy our best-in-class content at an exceptional value, and offer subscribers greater flexibility in managing their accounts, Warner Bros. Discoverys streaming chief JB Perrette said at the time.These updates provide a simple way for subscribers to add-on a new member to their account, or for existing subscribers who have users outside of their household to smoothly, and in an uninterrupted fashion, transition their profile so that extra member can continue to access Max. On his Thursday, May 8, 2025 first quarter-earnings conference call, Perrette said his and David Zaslavs password-sharing crackdown initiative will take 12 to 18 months to be full steam.

It will create another boost of both subscriber and [average revenue per user] growth through the extra member add-on, Perrette said.

Content is obviously the fuel of this entire thing, he continued and content they do have.

What Casey (Bloys) and the team have curated over the next 18-24 months is stronger than anything weve ever had and more consistent, Perrette said. And so that will be another growth.

Max is home to all HBO content and the lions share of Discovery+ series. Top Max originals include Hacks, The Pitt, And Just Like That and more.

Netflix has majorly growth membership and profits with what it calls its paid sharing option; Disney+ followed suit. As Zaslav noted, there is a significant delay to announcing a new revenue stream and realizing its monetization.

The plan worked wonders for Netflix, and seems to have had positive effects for Disney, though the smaller the service the more limited its impact. And a 12-18 month timeline is longer than what Netflix saw after they implemented it.

Here you can find everything youve ever wanted to know about the Max password-sharing crackdown. And you can find Warner Bros. Discoverys first-quarter earnings here.

Alex Weprin contributed to this report.