When it comes to breakups, couples (depending on how long they dated) find themselves dividing their assets such as furniture or friends.
But what about passwords for streaming services?
A 2020 study by VPN service provider ExpressVPN, found that 78% of the shared passwords for couples are for streaming services, and that millennials and Gen Z are more likely to share passwords with their significant others.
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Nick Leighton, an etiquette expert who hosts the podcast "Were You Raised by Wolves?", told KNX In Depth that when it comes to how to navigate who gets what streaming service, it’s all about being mindful.
“So, as we have this sort of conversation, that’s our baseline – ‘What will sort of be the most mindful?’” he said. “And I think a lot people would say ‘Who’s paying for this account?’ Possession is 9/10ths of the law here. So if it’s on your credit card, that’s your account and it’s up to you decide whether or not you want to keep sharing.”
Leighton added that it also depends on whether or not the breakup was amicable, in which case it’s best to give your ex ahead up.
“Unless it’s a really nasty break up, where you’re de-Facebooking, you’re blocking on Instagram, it’s final, it’s nice to give somebody a heads up that you’re about to change the password,” he explained. “Just so they could be sort of prepared for it.”
While Leighton said a lot of couples who break up do share the streaming services, he added some people change their ex’s name on the account profile.
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“What usually happens though is they’ll start dating somebody new, they’ll the name of an ex as one of the profiles, and then they’ll be like ‘Oh, Brenda’s gotta go’,” he explained. “But then what some people do is change the name of that profile just to be something more innocuous so that a new boyfriend or girlfriend doesn’t realize that an ex still has a profile.”
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