Major Netflix changes leave hit shows and films hanging in the balance in UK

A MAJOR Netflix change could leave beloved shows and films hanging in the balance in the UK.

The streaming giant has warned it may be forced to remove a portion of its content to British users.

SOPA Images/LightRocket via Gett

A major Netflix change could leave beloved shows and films hanging in the balance in the UK[/caption]

AFP

The government’s new Media Bill could see Netflix ‘purging’ content from its platform[/caption]

It comes as the government plans to introduce a new Media Bill which will directly impact streaming companies.

It would mean the likes of Netflix and Disney+ would be monitored by existing TV watchdog Ofcom.

According to Deadline, bosses at Netflix have written to the government calling for “greater clarity” on their plans.

The letter outlines how Netflix would be forced to “purge” content from its UK platform “on a regular basis”.

It says: “The range and variety of Netflix’s content, generally considered a strength of our offering in terms of maximising choice for British viewers, could equally become a potential source of risk from a compliance perspective if it fell within Ofcom’s remit.

“Without considerably greater clarity around the scope and application of these provisions, it would inevitably be easier to remove content pre-emptively from our UK catalogue than risk an onerous compliance burden and potential liability.”

Netflix stopped short on revealing which shows would be in danger of facing the axe.

Disney+ is also understood to have written to the government with their concerns about the new Bill.

The Media Bill’s draft was published online in March and details how streamers would have to comply with impartiality laws that broadcasters such as the BBC and ITV face.

Meanwhile, the days of sharing a Netflix account among friends and family are gone.

Netflix banned viewers who don’t live under the same roof as the primary account holder from streaming content last week – which has left some customers vowing to quit.

But savvy tech users have adopted a ‘rules are made to be broken’ approach and have taken this on as a fresh challenge.

In doing so, they believe they’ve come up with a way to get past the password sharing crackdown.