Top 3 Reasons Why it Sucks to Netflix outside the US

Article by George Norman (Cybersecurity Editor)

on 29 Jan 2016

It’s great that Netflix has gone global and is now available everywhere (except China, North Korea, Crimea and Syria). If you’re from Europe for example and you said to yourself “this is great news, I’m going to subscribe right now,” you need to curb your enthusiasm.

Using Netflix outside the good old US of A has some major drawbacks. Here are the main three ones.

1. You’ll pay more!



Netflix has three subscription plans to offer: Basic, Standard, and Premium. The price for the Standard subscription is $9.99 in the US and €9.99 in Europe. The same, right? Not, it’s not the same, and the explanation is quite simple.

One dollar does not equal one euro. The two currencies aren’t worth the same. The dollar is worth less, it’s been trailing behind the euro for quite some time now. So by paying for your Netflix subscription with euros, you’re paying more than if you were to pay with dollars.

And do you think you get more because you pay more? Think again.


2. You’ll get less content!



Netflix has a library of more than 1,100 TV shows and more than 4,500 movies. This 2016, Netflix wants to release 31 new and returning original series, 30 original kids series, two dozen original feature films and documentaries, and lots of stand-up comedy specials. That’s a lot of content, which is good. But it’s not universally available, which is definitely not good.

Only US residents have 100% access to Netflix’s library of movies and TV shows. As Finder.com has uncovered, people from the UK can access 34.5% of the movies and 38% of the TV shows, while people from France can access 32% of the movies and 33% of the TV shows. The ones who have it the worst are the Albanians. People from Albania can access just 4.3% of the movies and 2.85% of the TV shows.

"No problem, I can use a VPN to fool Netflix into thinking I’m from the US, right?" Good of you to point that out. Because…


3. Netflix is cracking down on “unblockers”



The use of proxies or VPNs – a.k.a unblockers – isn’t something new. Netflix subscribers have been using them for some time now to bypass geographical restrictions and have access to Netflix’s complete library of movies and TV shows.

What is new is Netflix’s decision to make life harder for those who use unblockers. Earlier this month, in a blog post entitled “Evolving Proxy Detection as a Global Service”, Netflix said the following:

“Some members use proxies or “unblockers” to access titles available outside their territory. To address this, we employ the same or similar measures other firms do. This technology continues to evolve and we are evolving with it. That means in coming weeks, those using proxies and unblockers will only be able to access the service in the country where they currently are. We are confident this change won’t impact members not using proxies.”


On the bright side…



The difference between the dollar and the euro isn’t that high. At the time of writhing this, €1 = $1.09. The difference is a lot smaller than it used to be. So yes, you are paying more, but you’re not paying that much more.

Netflix is working on offering the same movies and TV series everywhere. For now, it’s upholding the historic practice of licensing content by geographic territories. But it is working so that in the future, everyone will be able to access Netflix’s full library of movies and TV shows.

VPN providers have spoken out against Netflix’s decision to ramp up its crackdown on unblockers. TorrentFreak got in touch with several VPN providers and they said they will address this issue and will make sure their customers can access Netflix. The bottom line is that it’s a cat and mouse game. The only way to end this debate is to make all the content available to all the people, no matter where they are.


In related news...



Soldiers who are deployed abroad need not worry about geographical blocks. Netflix blocks regular people who want to circumvent these restrictions, but it doesn’t block the US military.

American military bases are exempt from copyright geo-blocks, Stars and Stripes reports.

“Netflix always exempts U.S. military bases around the world,” said Anne Marie Squeo, a spokeswoman for Netflix. “They will still be able to access the U.S. catalog.”

The problem is that this doesn’t apply to soldiers who live off base.

Soldiers who live off base can't access Netflix’s library as if they were in the US. They have to put up with content restrictions, just like everyone else, or they have to use a VPN. As you can imagine, Netflix’s decision to block VPNs isn’t sitting well with some US soldiers.

“My VPN hasn’t been blocked,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Eric Cutright, a Navy counselor who is stationed in Bahrain. “But if it does, I will be pissed. Netflix Bahrain is trash.”

In case you were wondering, people in Bahrain can access 31% of the movies and 28% of the TV shows. They have it a lot better than the Albanians!



Latest News


Sony's 'Attack of the Blockbusters Sale' Slashes Prices in Half for a Ton of PS4 Games

17 Aug 2017

How Samsung's New T5 Compares to the Old T3 Portable SSD (Infographic)

17 Aug 2017

See all