It wasn’t that long ago (okay, maybe it was) when TVs only had a few channels to watch. Heck, before that, TVs didn’t even exist. Fast forward to today, and TVs mainly serve as a device for streaming content online. Smart TVs, tablets, and smartphones have risen in popularity, and usage, which makes sense when there’s just so much to watch, including hit shows from the UK like The Crown.

However, the one thing that stops us from having complete freedom and control over the content we crave… is our geography. And that’s a barrier we want to overcome.

“This content is not available in your region.” It’s an infuriating message to see when you’re online when you’re activating YouTube or trying to access a different streaming site. Even worse when a website links you to it from an article, claiming that you ‘need to see it,’ only to find out that you can’t. It’s not fair that you should be penalized just because of your location. So how do you get around that?

We know of two options. One that is only attainable if you’re a jet-setting millionaire with homes in every country. The other, and arguable easier, is to just use a VPN. But for argument’s sake, let’s hear them both out.

Travel the world, watch TV

If you have unlimited funds at your disposal, then Geo-Blocked Content Online isn’t going to affect you. You can head straight to your private jet and fly over to your other houses in locations around the world. Easy, isn’t it? Though if you had that amount of money to be able to travel wherever you wanted, a few things come to mind. Firstly, why are you going to travel all the way abroad just to watch TV or stream a movie? Surely you’d be living it up with the rich and famous and doing your best to avoid the snapping cameras of the paparazzi? Secondly… actually we don’t have another point; it’s just too ridiculous. Because even if you’re uber-rich, you can still just do the second method like everybody else – get a VPN.

The easy way to get more content

Virtual private networks (VPNs) are the go-to method to help you read or stream content that’s blocked because of your location. Easily downloadable and simple to use, a VPN lets you head online from another destination, giving you instant access to geo-blocked content online.

So, how does it work? It’s all in the name, really – virtual private network – you get to choose a different network to log on to the internet with. It’s virtual, and more importantly, it’s private. That means the regular IP address that you use will remain hidden, making VPNs a great tool for keeping your information hidden. More importantly, it means your IP address could actually be coming from anywhere in the world. And that’s how you get past the geo-restrictions.

The first thing you need to do is look around for a reliable VPN provider. We’ve found a few that are a breeze to use and come with a range of security and privacy benefits. Make sure you check all the advantages of PIA VPN services to pick the right one for your needs to bypass Geo-Blocked Content Online. Once you’ve done that, you can add the VPN to your devices and begin your quest to unlock all that content.

From the VPN menu, you’ll see a huge selection of servers. They’ll all be based in different towns in different countries. All you need to do is select one and turn it on. Then you can go online essentially ‘from’ that country. All those TV shows you couldn’t watch because you’re not based in France, like the Lupin series, you’ll have access to it all when you use a French server. The same goes for reading material, too, and websites, but you can keep your French erotica to yourself.

VPNs are also built with fast speeds in mind too – the last thing you want is slow speeds, especially if you’re streaming something. You can try out different servers to gauge the speeds and then use them to watch or browse to your heart’s content. It also works the other way around too – for instance, if you go abroad and want to access content back home, you’ll now find that it’s blocked. Just use the VPN and select a server from close to home, and it’ll be just like you never left. Though if you’re on vacation, that might seem a bit pointless.

Now you can see why this method is a lot easier than plane hopping all across the globe. Though if you’re mega-rich like Elon Musk, that might be fun.