How to Unblock Geo-Restricted Streaming Services In Your Country?
In the world that we live in today, while wider access to the internet across the globe has enabled us to get access to the resources of countries from different parts of the world, it is true that this is also the age of censorship and geo-restrictions.
This is true of the top-notch streaming services. A lot of the streaming services available today are geographically restricted. What is meant by this is that these services are permitted to deploy services only within pre-determined geographical boundaries.
This poses difficulties when you are traveling abroad or if you want to watch the content exclusively available on a geographically-restricted streaming service. So, let’s learn how to unblock geo-restricted streaming services in your country.
To work your way around this problem and get access to any streaming service in any part of the world, all you have to do is learn how to use a VPN.
A VPN helps you bypass all geographical restrictions and therefore allows you to access any platform of your choice regardless of where you are located. To make sure you are able to do that, use a strong and reliable VPN service like ExpressVPN.
Quick Steps: How to unblock geo-restricted streaming services in your country?
- Subscribe to a strong and reliable VPN service, like ExpressVPN.
- Download and Install the VPN app on your device.
- Open the VPN app and connect to a VPN server of the country where the streaming service you want to access is available.
- Go to the official website of your chosen streaming service and enjoy its services from your country without having to worry about its geo-restrictions!
Why can’t I get access to some streaming services in my country?
Most of the popular streaming services are subject to geographical restrictions because they want to keep the content they offer exclusive to some regions or countries. For this, they sign agreements of licensing and copyright.
To comply with the agreements, the services are only available to people in certain geographical areas and restricted in others which is why people present in such areas do not get access to them.
To make sure that no individual from a location where the service is subject to geographical restrictions can get access, the service checks the IP address of each and every device which tries to access the service and then only lets those devices get access where the service is available.
In case you do not get access to any streaming service from where you are located it means that the service is geographically restricted in your area.
To inform the users about the same, the services also send a message about the unavailability in their region due to geographical restrictions.
How to bypass geographical restrictions to get access to a streaming service from anywhere?
To get access to any streaming service which is geographically restricted in your region, you need to bypass geographical restrictions it has because you can’t get access to the device without doing so.
We recommend you make use of a good VPN because it has been proven that VPNs are the best way of bypassing restrictions quickly as well as safely.
What you have to do is employ the VPN on your device and then connect the VPN with a server of any country where the service is available.
Doing so will assign your device an IP address of the country of which server it has been connected to. This is how the streaming service will read your location to be of that country where the service is available due to the fake IP address and thus allow you access to the service.
The VPN in use also masks up the original IP address of the device which is of a country where the service is geographically restricted, so that the original physical location cannot be known.
So this is how you can make use of a VPN on your device and unblock any streaming service (having geographical restrictions) from wherever you are located and thus stream on it without any hindrance.
Detailed steps to unblock geo-restricted streaming services in your country with a VPN
If you are interested in bypassing the geographical restrictions of any streaming platform and enjoy its services from anywhere around the world. In order to do so all you have to know is how to properly use a VPN. Given below is a detailed step-by-step guide on using a VPN to unblock geo-restricted streaming services in your country.
Step 1: First, since you need a VPN, start off by signing up for a strong and reliable VPN service. We strongly recommend that you use ExpressVPN.
Step 2: Next you are required to download the app of your selected VPN and install it on your device.
Step 3: All top-notch VPNs require a subscription. So, select a VPN plan you find most suitable and proceed by paying.
Step 4: After you have successfully made the payment and registered on your chosen VPN, sign in to the VPN app by inputting the same credentials using which you have registered for your VPN.
Step 5: On your VPN app, connect to a VPN server in the country where the streaming platform that you are interested in available. For example, to access an American streaming service, you will connect to a VPN server in the US.
Step 6: Go to the official website of your chosen streaming service on any of the browsers on a compatible device of the streaming service. Or you can also go to the app store of your device and download the platform app, if it has one.
Step 7: Once the platform is launched: if the platform is free to access, you can directly start streaming. If it requires you to log in: log in using the same credentials that you used while creating the account.
Step 8: Once logged in, surf through the content catalog of the platform and enjoy the services of the platform from anywhere around the world regardless of its geo-restrictions.
Can I use any VPN to unblock geo-restricted streaming platforms?
While there are numerous free VPN options available on the internet today, but not all VPNs are fit to use on your device to unblock geo-restricted streaming platforms.
Due to the lack of features that can guarantee complete protection while you are online, most free VPNs are among the most frequent causes of your online security and privacy being compromised.
There have been several instances where they have allowed a third party to access data, which has and can have various unintended repercussions.
Such VPNs do not provide satisfactory services and cannot guarantee you even the most fundamental safety, security and other essential services like access to any geo-restricted streaming service by getting over its regional constraints.
Because of this, you should stay away from free VPNs and instead use a trustworthy paid VPN by examining its features and services. Use ExpressVPN for guaranteed and safe results.
Things to look for while choosing a VPN
Choosing the best VPN to use is getting more difficult as there are more VPN options available. There are many important components of a VPN, but the following list emphasizes the key factors to consider when choosing a VPN to use when trying to unblock geo-restricted streaming services in your country:
- High security features.
- A strict no-logs policy.
- Numerous server alternatives accessible from numerous countries.
- The website and app should work with all kinds of devices.
- 24/7 customer support service.
- Fast speed and connectivity.
- Free trial to test the service before committing to it.
- A money-back guarantee for if you do not like the service.
- Multiple logins using the same account.
- User-friendly features.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are some streaming services geographically restricted?
Some streaming services are geographically restricted because services want to keep the content offered exclusive. They sign agreements of copyright and licensing for the same.
How does the streaming services find out the location of the devices trying to access them?
The services find out the location of the devices trying to access them by checking the IP address of the devices because IP addresses are unique addresses of the devices which are assigned to them based on their physical location.
Are free VPNs unsafe to be used for bypassing geographical restrictions?
Yes, free VPNs are unsafe to be used for bypassing geographical restrictions because they do not have enough features to ensure security and privacy on the internet.
Can a VPN hide the original IP address of my device?
Yes, VPNs are capable of hiding the original IP address of devices along with providing a fake IP address. In this way the services cannot know the original location and thus there is no problem while getting access.
Conclusion
It is common for streaming services to have geographical restrictions and this leads to inaccessibility of the services to people present in the regions where they are geographically restricted.
However, it is possible to get to such services even from the regions where they are restricted by making use of a VPN on the device with which the service needs to be accessed.
Out of all the VPNs available at present, we suggest you to use ExpressVPN because it has been found out that this VPN is completely reliable and performs it’s functions really well.