With the rise of streaming services like Netflix and HBO Go, casual password sharing has become a cultural phenomenon. It might also be a federal crime in the US, according to a controversial new court ruling.
But research from IBM suggests that people aren't actually sharing their passwords much outside their family. While 42% of the 1,000 US adult respondents said they had shared passwords with family, only 2% said they shared with friends, and 1% with a roommate.
All told, slightly over 4% said they shared their passwords with non-family members.
This isn't the narrative we are used to hearing in the industry.
Last year, a report from Parks Associates estimated the industry would lose $500 million to password sharing in 2015. This data suggests that might be a bit of an overstatement given the likelihood of getting multiple family members, especially in the same household, to subscribe to the same service. It also puts Netflix and HBO's historically lax position on password sharing into a bit of perspective.
Here is the full chart from IBM's Clearleap:
SEE ALSO: Pablo Escobar's brother is demanding $1 billion from Netflix for 'Narcos'
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: How to find Netflix’s secret categories