(Gizmodo) It’s one of the internet’s open secrets that if you don’t live in the US, but wish you did because of the better Netflix offerings, you can use any number of Chrome extensions or VPNs to get around the geo-blocker. However, it looks like the free ride might be coming to an end, as Netflix is starting to crack down on the practice.
As TorrentFreak has noted, Netflix has recently taken up blocking some services that get around geo-blockers. They’re targeting VPNs, which tunnel traffic through a particular service, and DNS-spoofing websites, which simply serve to change your virtual location. Blocking isn’t widespread for now — Hola Better Internet, a hugely popular Chrome extension, is still functioning — but as TorrentFreak points out, this could easily be a test of a more blanket block that is yet to be introduced.
Blocking geo-pirates is a logical step for the content providers, who have thus far concentrated more on streaming and torrenting websites in their crusade against the internet. But since geo-piracy is easy to detect, and legally and technically relatively simple to take measures against, it was really only a matter of time. [TorrentFreak]
Update: Netflix tells us that there’s been “no change” in the way it handles VPNs, so you shouldn’t have to worry about the company getting tough any time soon.
