Park Jae-hyuk is a seasoned journalist who has provided comprehensive coverage of South Korea's corporate dynamics, economic policies, industry challenges and the global positioning of Korean companies. Based on the articles he has written since joining The Korea Times in 2016, his investigative approach has helped readers understand corporate governance, economic trends and business strategies shaping South Korea’s economy.
Methods to avoid YouTube, Netflix restrictions go viral
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By Park Jae-hyuk
More Korean users of streaming service platforms are looking for ways to pay lower subscription fees, as YouTube has joined Netflix, Disney+ and Tving in hiking prices, according to industry officials, Sunday.
Last Friday, YouTube notified Korean users of its plan to raise the price of its ad-free YouTube Premium service to 14,900 won ($11) per month from 10,450 won. Those who subscribed to the service before September 2020 were allowed to continue paying 8,690 won over the next three months, but will also have to start paying 14,900 won in April next year.
The announcement was made just a month after Netflix informed Korean account owners of an additional 5,000 won fee for sharing one's account with people who do not live together.
Given that Disney+ also began a crackdown on account sharing and the Korean service Tving decided to raise its fee, various methods have gone viral so as to continue to enjoy their content at lower prices or for free.
Some users are sharing how to circumvent geographical restrictions through virtual private networks (VPNs), so as to create YouTube premium accounts located in countries where the streaming service provider offers relatively lower prices, such as Argentina, India and Turkey. Some people even put their overseas accounts up for sale online, despite the illegality of such a practice.
The popularity of websites that illegally share content via streaming service platforms is also growing once again. According to website traffic tracker Similarweb, monthly visits to one such website soared to 19.5 million in October from 3.5 million in September.
Amid growing concerns over deceptive methods being used to avoid “streamflation,” a portmanteau of streaming and inflation, consumers pointed out that streaming service platforms also breached their promises as soon as they seized control of the market.
“When I subscribed to YouTube Premium before 2020, it definitely said I would be able to use the service at the same price for my whole life,” one of the users wrote online.
In 2017, Netflix said, “love is sharing a password” in a social media post.