YouTube is going after people on the family premium plan and breaking its rules for using the subscription with up to 5 members. The platform has been lenient with its requirement to use the Family plan but
just like Netflix and Disney+ it is now taking on the defaulters and asking them to use the account within the same household.
The rules are not new, per se, but YouTube is taking a stringent move by making its users follow the rules, which means, some of them are seeing their Family plan paused, and they can’t use the benefits of the Premium version.
YouTube Family Plan: The Household Issue Again
YouTube Family plan is quite effective and a smart option for many. You get all the Premium benefits for up to five people in the family. But the biggest catch for the plan is that YouTube wants everyone to reside in the same household which is monitored using the IP address on which these accounts are running.
Many users have shared about facing this issue via Reddit forum and social media in recent weeks. There are definite work-arounds to making YouTube plans work across households. But it does feel like YouTube is starting a trend that only ends with users losing their rights.
Whether YouTube intends to have a new add-on tier like Netflix for such offerings, or decide to block the access for the non-household users altogether, we should know in the coming months. Speaking of which, YouTube has started sending out emails warning users about pausing their Premium family membership in 14 days.
And what happens when the plan is paused, the platform says you will be able to watch the content but with ads, and other premium benefits not available.
YouTube is giving you a chance to contact them and seek support if the user feels their account suspension was an error.
Family plans are meant to work across members, and defaulting this cannot be the same as the password sharing that Netflix users have exploited for years. Having said that, these rules are somewhat loosely structured and it is high time the whole concept of household gets a new definition, especially with changing times and trends.
