iWorld
Netflix to cancel subscriptions of inactive members
MUMBAI: Streaming giant Netflix has taken another step to make the service more user-friendly, by cancelling the membership of inactive subscribers. It will start asking customers who haven’t used its platform in the past year if they want to keep their subscriptions.
“We’re asking everyone who has not watched anything on Netflix for a year since they joined to confirm they want to keep their membership. And we’ll do the same for anyone who has stopped watching for more than two years,” Netflix product innovation director Eddy Wu said in a statement.
If they don’t confirm that they want to keep subscribing, Netflix will automatically cancel their subscriptions. These inactive accounts represent less than half of one percent of the service’s overall member base, only a few hundred thousand, and are already factored into its financial guidance.
“We’ve always thought it should be easy to sign up and to cancel. So, as always, anyone who cancels their account and then rejoins within ten months will still have their favourites, profiles, viewing preferences and account details just as they left them. In the meantime, we hope this new approach saves people some hard earned cash,” Wu added.
Follow Tellychakkar for the consumer facing news & entertainment
Gaming
Sony raises PS5 prices for second time in under a year
US disc edition jumps $100 to $649.99 as memory costs surge.
MUMBAI: Sony just hit the pause button on affordable gaming because when memory prices skyrocket, even the Playstation has to pay the premium. Sony has announced its second price increase for the Playstation 5 range in less than a year, citing pressures in the global economic landscape and a sharp rise in memory component costs driven by AI demand.
In the US, the PS5 disc edition will rise from $549.99 to $649.99, a $100 hike while the digital edition increases to $599.99. The more powerful PS5 Pro will jump $150 to $899.99. The Playstation Portal remote player will also rise by $50 to $249.99. The new prices take effect on 2 April 2026.
Similar increases have been applied in the UK (£90 per model), Europe and Japan. Sony last raised PS5 prices in the US in August 2025.
“We know that price changes impact our community, and after careful evaluation, we found this was a necessary step to ensure we can continue delivering innovative, high-quality gaming experiences to players worldwide,” Sony said in a blog post.
The hikes come amid an unprecedented surge in memory prices, as manufacturers prioritise supply for AI data centres. Analysts say Sony had likely secured price protections for components that have now expired, forcing the company to protect its hardware margins.
Ampere Analysis research director of games Piers Harding-Rolls told CNBC that further increases from Microsoft and Nintendo would not be surprising, though Nintendo may hesitate to raise the price of its recently launched Switch 2 while establishing the new platform.
The increases arrive eight months before the highly anticipated release of GTA 6, which is expected to drive strong console sales. However, early reactions online have been a mix of disappointment and resignation, with growing concern that premium gaming is increasingly becoming a hobby for higher-income players.
In a sector already grappling with tariffs, inflation and component shortages, Sony’s move underscores a tough reality: even the most popular consoles are not immune to the rising cost of keeping up with the latest technology.
