Warner Bros Discovery has decided to crack down on people sharing a Max password across multiple households. From now on, anyone doing so will need to sign up for their own Extra Member Add-On. And that, unfortunately but entirely predictably, will cost the account holder cold hard cash.

In a press release, Warner Bros Discovery spells out exactly what the Extra Member Add-On means for users. But in a nutshell, the primary Max account holder will now be able to invite a friend or family member living outside their household to create a separate, standalone account. And this will cost $7.99/month in the US.

There are plenty of details and caveats beyond this simple truth. First, the extra member will have their own login credentials and be able to enjoy all the benefits included in the primary account holder’s plan. However, extra members can only “stream from one profile on one device at a time.”

Max subscribers keen to purchase an Extra Member Add-On can do so from their subscription settings. Once purchased, you can then invite and manage the chosen extra member via the settings menu on both the web and mobile app. Given that this is limited to one add-on per account, you’ll have to choose who gets access carefully. Or just ask who is willing to pay the extra fee.

Warner Bros Discovery is obviously labeling this as a feature which is “designed to give existing subscribers greater flexibility and control over how they manage sharing their Max accounts.” But most people will rightfully see this as an attempt to crack down on password sharing. Because that’s what it is.

Will This Really Stop Password Sharing?

While Warner Bros Discovery is keen to talk up the positive sides of this, there’s very little information about what happens to subscribers choosing to ignore this option. But we assume the company will adopt a similar policy to Netflix. So, right now, this will feel optional, but over time, the crackdown may get stricter.

This change has been on the cards for a while. Not only because the likes of Netflix and Disney+ have already cracked down on password sharing with similar efforts, but Warner Bros Discovery has previously warned (via The Verge) that people using others’ accounts would need to “pay a little bit more.”

Will this work to stop password sharing? Possibly, but it all depends on how successfully Warner Bros Discovery institutes this. As I said above, even if you “get away” with password sharing with family or friends right now and into the near future, at some point, that may change. At which point, you’ll be forced to make use of this new feature.