Sharing Netflix Login Illegal In Tennessee

The Governor of Tennessee has signed legislation that makes it illegal to use a friend's login to access movies on Netflix or listen to music on services like Rhapsody. The new law takes effect July 1.

Originally, the measure was proposed to stop hackers who steal passwords and sell them on the Internet. However, its strongest sponsor is the country music industry, a powerful force in the state. The recording industry has made no secret of its desire to stop consumers from accessing copyrighted material without paying.

Those who are old enough may remember when Napster was a free peer-to-peer music exchange, in which consumers downloaded songs for free. The recording industry sued and stopped the practice, turning Napster into a sales vehicle for content.

It's one thing to share your Netflix subscription with another family member, say advocates of the measure. It's quite another to send your username and password to all your friends. And college students who share their subscription with everyone in their dorm could also find themselves in hot water.

How would anyone get caught? Subscription services can monitor the IP addresses of the computers accessing a subscription. If one subscription has dozens of users, the subscription service can press criminal charges. At least, in Tennessee they can.

Supporters of the legislation say it is no different than laws that prohibit the theft of cable television. In fact, they say it's simply an expansion of that law.

Under the new Tennessee law, using up to $500 of unauthorized entertainment could net a perpetrator a year in jail and a $2,500 fine. Theft of amounts greater than that would be classified as a felony, with more serious penalties.