No free hot-dog lunch… Costco said it’ll start checking membership cards and photo IDs at its self-checkout kiosks. The goal: keep nonmembers out. Similar to the Walmart-owned Sam’s Club, Costco charges its 66M paying members a yearly subscription fee. In return, customers get access to the store’s bulk-pricing deals via membership cards they show at checkout. At least in theory. The big-box behemoth said it noticed an uptick in people sneaking in with someone else’s card.
Pay to shop: Members pay $60/year, with an “executive membership” costing $120.
Members only: Ensuring its shoppers are actual members matters because the chain makes most of its income from subs. Last year, membership fees raked in $4.2B.
When sharing isn’t caring… Costco isn’t the only biz sick of subscribers sharing the bounty. After several delays, last month Netflix said it’d start telling customers “your Netflix account is for you and the people you live with — your household.” Despite years of tolerating (and sometimes encouraging) password sharing, the streamer put the kibosh on the free rides. The ’Flix now charges sharers an extra $8/month for non-household accounts.
More users doesn’t always equal more profit… The sharing economy’s getting squeezed, and even companies that explicitly built sharing into membership perks have walked things back. This year American Express said many cardholders could no longer bring guests into its airport Centurion Lounges for free (new charge: $50). While corporates’ anti-sharing moves may come off as Grinch-like, they stand to benefit bottom lines. BTW: despite grumblings about its crackdown, Netflix reportedly saw a lift in paying subs.