A new technology has been released today that may turn into a wake up call for many of us who use services like Netflix. Synamedia debuted a new product at CES that uses AI to to limit the number of people who can log in to a given account on any paid-for video streaming service. The new service apparently tracks down suspicious users and flags them. The company, which sells many different products which all promise to monetize video-streaming, claims to "empower Pay TV operators to deliver new or augmented video services to drive revenues, boldly reach new markets, and deliver exceptional subscriber experiences to consumers." In what world is limiting our free access to entertainment "exceptional?"
Although many may argue that if you use a service you should pay for it, that the $10 a month won't be the thing to send you into the red, this is not the point. Just listen to the language that these people use:
Casual credentials sharing is becoming too expensive to ignore. Our new solution gives operators the ability to take action. Many casual users will be happy to pay an additional fee for a premium, shared service with a greater number of concurrent users. It’s a great way to keep honest people honest while benefiting from an incremental revenue stream.