TORONTO — Netflix Canada is rolling out its long-anticipated plans to crack down on password sharing.

The streaming giant says it will begin notifying Canadian users today by email about limitations on who can access their account outside their household.

Under the new rules, premium and standard account holders will be given the option to add extra members for $7.99 per month.

For that price, premium high-definition 4K subscribers can add two members who don’t live in their household.

Standard subscribers, who pay less per month, can add one additional member for the same additional monthly fee. Basic and ad-supported plans will not be able to add more members.

Netflix did not say when it would begin enforcing the new rules.

Over the past year, Netflix began testing password-sharing rules in Latin America, part of an effort to boost flagging subscriber growth.

The latest wave of countries being added to the tighter restrictions include Canada, Spain, Portugal and New Zealand, while the company says other countries will be introduced over the next few months.

The company says more than 100 million households share accounts, which affects its “ability to invest in great new TV and films.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023.

David Friend, The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — The Bank of Canada’s first-ever summary of deliberations reveals that the governing council ultimately decided to raise its key interest rate last month because of ongoing strength in the economy.

The decision to hike by a quarter of a percentage point on Jan. 25 came after the central bank discussed the risk that inflation would get stuck above two per cent down the line.

The Bank of Canada’s governing council unanimously agreed that the bank’s action to date had been forceful and the full economic effects of rate hikes have not yet been felt.

The tight labour market and strong GDP readings were the rationale behind the governing council’s ultimate decision to raise its key interest rate.

With the rate hike, the central bank also indicated that it would take a conditional pause to assess how the economy is responding to higher rates.

After some deliberation on what forward guidance the central bank should give, governing council members agreed to signal a pause to convey that the bar for raising rates further is now higher.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023.

The Canadian Press