So Netflix has committed to enforcing the geographic restrictions placed on its content. If one was in a country with a watered down version of Netflix, and if one chose to overcome that deficit through use of a proxy server or VPN, is that something that is actually (a) detectable, and (b) preventable by Netflix? Or are these ambitious statements designed to dissuade those not yet using such trickery?
They could block IPs of known public VPNs, this ends up being done by pure accident on a lot of message boards and wikis because trolls and other malicious users will hide behind free VPNs.
They also may be able to figure out if certain IP blocks are used by certain premium VPN services, but this is more dodgy and unlikely to happen.
So the short version is that if someone pays for a VPN, they’re probably home free, but Hola Unblocker is likely to do anything useful, assuming they really commit that is.
Can’t they just lock the account to one country? I’m assuming that, as I signed up for Netflix.com.au, my billing address is in Australia, I use an Australian credit card to pay and I’ve accessed the service via an Australian IP address, from now on they won’t be maintaining the fiction that I must be “travelling” to other countries and accessing the local service; it’s an Australian Netflix account and it can only access Australia, full stop.
They could start with the really easy method and only serve you content from the address in your account. They should have a decent idea of the country you live in from your payment details. Doing that will probably stop 99% of people from getting the wrong content. They might try and maintain a list of exit nodes for popular VPN services.
Wouldn’t stop you from opening up an American netflix account and always accessing it all via VPN, having the VPN stream Breaking Bad back to Australia. The only thing that stops that is them blocking the VPN.
It would if they only allowed you to open an account in the country of your billing address.
Yes but there would be added difficulties for an Australian trying to establish a US billing address as opposed to simply using a VPN.
Sure you could have a cousin in the US and reimburse them for paying for your account, but many less people would be able to do that. If they combine a check against the billing address with a check for know VPNs then they’ve eliminated a large number of people.
For premium VPN services, Netflix could buy an account with each of the premium services and find out the addresses that way. The cost would be minimal for Netflix.
They don’t even need to do that. There are services which maintain databases of VPN topologies that Netflix can subscribe to.
I pay my account via credit card. Unless they van verify CC address payment, I see a way around the billing location issue.
Did they ask for your CC billing address when you signed up?
I just checked my account and they only seem to have my zip code. This is probably used primarily for trying to weed out credit card fraud. But I signed up years ago when the problem of different content based on location was not applicable.
The problem with basing your content on your billing address is that it likely breaks licensing contracts. The contracts are based on geographical region, not the permanent residence of its customers. Legally, if they can only show Fargo in Germany, that means it’s illegal to show Fargo to Germans on vacation in Florida. But if they’re not allowed to show Breaking Bad in Australia, that doesn’t mean it’s illegal to show Breaking Bad to an Australian on vacation in California.
Even having a zip code recorded narrows down the country pretty radically. Americans have 99999 style zip codes (or ones with some more digits after a hyphen; doesn’t matter); Canadians have A1A 1A1 style postal codes. Other countries have codes in other formats.
Too long ago to remember. But if they did and I stated a false address, how would they verify that?
They will never eliminate all methods of people getting access to the wrong content. The people on vacation is probably pretty low on the list of complaints from Netflix’s content providers.
But my point is that it’s not a problem at all, it’s the whole point of the licensing contracts. If you’re an Australian in the US, it’s illegal for Netflix to show you Australian-only content, even if that is your permanent address. And if you’re an American in Australia, it is illegal to show you Breaking Bad, despite the fact that you could see it for free back home. So you can’t tie content to someone’s billing address. It goes against the licensing agreement.
Which begs the question, is it against the rules to use a proxy? Netflix and the content providers certainly think so. But let’s do a thought experiment. Suppose you live in Mexico, but you have a powerful telescope and can watch your neighbors TV screen in San Diego, effectively getting American content in Mexico. Is that illegal? If not, isn’t a proxy server just a long-range digital telescope?
No, it matters little. I have Australian friends that take an American hotel. Change the billing address to the hotel address, then sign up for it. After it is approved, they change the billing address back to Australia.
It’s never failed them yet. People DO travel all the time with credit cards so you have to allow changes in address.
I would imagine that the billing address you give has to match the address on file for your credit card.
It isn’t illegal it is a violation of the licensing contract. It is a dispute between two corporations. The content providers want Netflix to take steps to prevent people from getting content that is not allowed. They also want Netflix’s money so they can’t make the restrictions to onerous or Netflix will not be able to meet them and they won’t get money.
Yeah, “illegal” was the wrong word. For a company, though, if you’re accused of breaking laws or breaking contracts, the result is the same: you lose money.