56% of Americans have shared subscription account information according to a recent survey conducted by YouGov Plc on behalf of Bankrate.com. A representative survey of 2,606 adults, including 1,902 who have a subscriber-only account was conducted between 12th – 14th February 2020. Streaming has largely replaced the purchase of physical media in the US, but each additional subscription, whether video, music or another form of entertainment, comes with added cost, meaning it’s increasingly necessary for consumers to get selective about which services fit their budgets.
The survey found that among all US adults, 42% say they have used someone else’s account to access a subscription service. This includes 35% who have borrowed video streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, Disney+, etc.), 14% who have used someone’s music streaming services (Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, etc.) and 6% who share online journalism subscriptions (WSJ.com, NYTimes.com, TheAthletic.com, etc.).
Younger Americans, including Generation Z (66%) and millennials (64%), are those most likely to have used someone else’s subscription service, while just 34% of Generation Xers and 26% of baby boomers admit to doing so.
Among all adults who use someone else’s subscriber content, the most common people they borrow from are friends (29%), significant others (29%), parents (28%) and siblings (26%). Less common borrowers included parents using their child’s accounts (19%), people borrowing from ex-significant others after the relationship ended (9%), those using account information from someone they don’t know (9%) or someone else (8%).
Streamers have become wise to this and are now starting to offer ‘couples’ and ‘family’ subscriptions to make going legit cost effective. For example, Spotify offers a family plan of six Premium accounts for family members under one roof for $14.99 monthly and Netflix offers different plans that let you stream up to two to four devices at the same time.
According to the survey, respondents believe they’re saving an average of $513 annually by using others’ subscription account information. Younger respondents, however, believe they get the most savings: on average, Gen Zers say they save $642 and millennials think they save $666 annually. That’s compared to the $379 Gen X borrowers think they save and $220 baby boomers believe they save each year.
Lower earners, too, believe they save more than higher earners. Those who make under $30,000 each year believe they save $703 annually by sharing account information while those who make over $80,000 estimate their savings at just $479 annually, on average.
Not only do survey respondents admit to using someone else’s subscription account information themselves, but many have also lent their own account info to others. The survey shows that, overall, 56% of people with accounts to access subscriber-only content have lent their account information or passwords to someone else. People are most likely to lend access to video streaming content, at 46%. 24% of subscribers have lent music streaming access and 8% have let someone borrow online journalism access.
And though they’re the most likely borrowers, the youngest Americans are also the most willing to share: 77% of Gen Zers and 74% of millennials have lent their subscriptions, compared to just 52% of Gen Xers and 35% of baby boomers.
