Last week, news surfaced that Netflix was making good on its promises to start aggressively blocking people from accessing Netflix content that hasn’t been licenced for their region. At least, in Australia.
Australian-based unblocking service uFlix confirmed that Netflix had started selectively blocking many of its users from accessing, in particular, the US version of Netflix which hosts thousands more titles than regions in other parts of the world.
“You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy. Please turn off any of these services and try again,” says the message that those who’ve been blocked have faced.
The general consensus amongst tech experts is that Netflix’s attempts to block anything will be futile, especially where VPN services are concerned – but is there any real danger of the company re-instating those geo-fences?
We reached out to our favourite of the unblocking services, Unotelly, for comment. They don’t seem to think there’s anything to worry about.
“At UnoTelly, we believe in an open and border-free Internet. We are confident that we can continue to deliver quality service to our loyal and supportive users,” Unotelly told us. “We have backup plans, and our users will be able to continue accessing access Netflix content outside their local Netflix region.“
To that end, there are already a few working solutions that they’re testing. IF you’re at all familiar with Unotelly’s “Dynamo,” it allows users to switch regions on the fly (Use the excellent Filemfy.com to browse and search through all regions). There are now a few options in their Dynamo that should work for you if you’re experiencing any issues accessing US Netflix in particular.
If you’re struggling with Netflix at the moment, and you’re an Unotelly subscriber, perhaps try one of the test regions. I’ve personally had great success with the US Legacy Ada region, which has fixed a few buffering issues I’ve had since Netflix went global.
Last Updated: January 25, 2016
VampyreSquirrel
January 25, 2016 at 12:02
We can to continue!!!!
Hammersteyn
January 25, 2016 at 12:08
XD
Geoffrey Tim
January 25, 2016 at 12:15
CHAIRMAN MAO WILL HAVE YOU TO BE KILLED.
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:33
xD
VampyreSquirrel
January 25, 2016 at 12:27
In case anyone missed what I’m going on about… (refresh)
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:32
You are mean. Well done! 😉
Derrich Schleich
January 25, 2016 at 14:10
The internet never forgets xD
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 16:24
erm why is the header bar so badly wrapped on your side? I need to look into that
VampyreSquirrel
January 25, 2016 at 17:17
It’s probably just the resolution… kak laptop, kak pc screen… not 1080p 😛
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 17:40
I did some fiddling in the CSS to work for kak laptops so it should work at the office tomorrow
VampyreSquirrel
January 26, 2016 at 08:36
LOL! I’ll have a look… thanks for being so considerate to us with kak laptops and kak screens.
VampyreSquirrel
January 26, 2016 at 16:08
Your CSS fiddling worked wonders just by the way 🙂
VampyreSquirrel
January 25, 2016 at 17:22
For reference, here’s a screenshot at home.
Hammersteyn
January 25, 2016 at 12:07
Netflix and their continuous struggle to make less money…. wait…. that’s not right.
Pieter Kruger
January 25, 2016 at 12:10
Using Unblock-Us, never had any issues before, will wait and see……..
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:12
Glad to hear it. I’m using the SA version and while it is awesome the selection is rather limited. I don’t see that changing if people continue to use other Neteflix regions though, need the money here to improve on the service.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 12:16
ummmmmm no. The only reason they have a smaller local library is because of existing agreements that need to expire.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:31
Well if they want to buy those licences at a later date they will need money for that. If SA isn’t making money for them why would the invest in it?
Geoffrey Tim
January 25, 2016 at 12:33
That’s not how it worrrrrrrrrrksssssssssssssss. Subscribe in SA – money goes to netflix. Subscribe in US – money goes to Netflix. Netlifx doesn’t care where the money comes from. They don’t invest in licencing specifically for SA; their goal is to invest in licencing globally.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:36
I mean why would they invest in SA’s service? Yes, the money goes to them no matter what, but people won’t subscribe to their service here if it’s crap. Like I won’t renew my subscription after the first month as what they have to offer doesn’t interest me.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 12:53
Netflix are in it for the long term, they know they have a library issue in SA and they will fix that then do marketing most probably.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:17
Hope so.
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 13:06
So do it properly, get Unotelly and switch to US Netflix and at the same time get Hulu. Problem solved.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:17
How much would all that cost in $$$? 0_O
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 13:24
DSTV Premium is currently R779 per month. We hardly watched and if there was something we wanted to watch via CatchUp there was always a streaming issue or problem.
Unotelly I’m doing a monthly subscription $4.95
Netflix is $9.99 and Hulu I went with the ad-free subscription for $11.99 (the one with ads is $7.95)
So collectively paying $26.93 and current exchange rate as of now is R443.21 so definitely well worth it.
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 14:20
Just remember….you need an internet link for this
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 14:53
True, currently I’m using a 4Mb uncapped. It’s a streaming service so Internet is a given requirement
Jim Lenoir (Banana Jim)
January 25, 2016 at 14:55
Two livers and a kidney…
BakedBagel
January 25, 2016 at 15:28
First time ive ever seen Gavin using a meme.
Shiiiiiiiiieeeeeet. Is this really Gavin?
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 16:23
He was that wrong with his statement…
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 12:13
The first rule of Unotelly is Unotalky.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:13
Please, stop!
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 12:14
NEVER!
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:32
I’m thinking of handing out bad-pun-cards.
Three strikes and you have to wash Darryn
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:32
Man, that is bad!
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:32
Not as bad as those TrevorPuns
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:33
True dat! You hear that @tre@Alien Emperor Trevor:disqus WASH DARRYN!
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 12:38
You should call them PUNch cards!
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:39
Ok, that is pretty good, I’ll allow it
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 12:40
I don’t need permission or approval. #foreverSinglePunner
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:17
HAhahahahaha!
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:34
So wait, the local new netflix has a more limited selection???
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 12:37
Yeah. Like only season 1 of many shows because the other licences have already been purchased. So have to wait.
The Grand Admiral Chief Prime
January 25, 2016 at 12:39
So that is a no from me then
Loftus
January 25, 2016 at 12:44
Try the FREE month, see if you like the concept of netflix. Yes they only have bite size selections of stuff the watch, same as only get a free food sample, not a whole meal for free.
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 12:55
I cancelled DSTV today. Moved to Netflix and Hulu permanently now for half the price (Unless the Rand/Dollar gets even worse). There is so much content to watch I could spend well over a year trying to watch all the stuff I’ve marked to watch while they add more content.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 12:57
I’d recommend Spartacus to start… boobies, boobies everywhere. Also the story is awesome
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 13:04
I’m continuing with the shows I was watching on DSTV with Hulu plus I found more shows I never got time to watch. On Netflix I’m catching up with Daredevil, Sense 8, Jessica Jones, etc. Just by browsing content I keep adding to the list and I’ll add Spatacus. I need to catch up on Walking Dead, still finish Helix, the 100, I might get into Game of Thrones now as well. The list is on and on.
Best part is being able to just switch on and chose whatever I like at anytime to watch and it streams so nicely in HD. So happy to drop DSTV and the CatchUp which always had issues.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 13:11
Game of Thrones isn’t on either… it’s on HBO streaming if you want.
Helix is awesome, also watch The strain and Zoo if you like Helix
And when you get bored there is a search engine that tells you which region to change to http://www.filmefy.com/
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 13:15
Got The strain and Zoo added to my list 🙂 It’s a really long list.
Checking filmefy now. Going to bookmark it
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 13:31
Helix would be awesome if its characters weren’t all so damn stupid.
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 13:31
Downloaded the Filmefy app. Shot for the info budd. Makes life easy trying to watch certain movies and knowing which region to switch to
Alien Emperor Trevor
January 25, 2016 at 13:08
I’ve just started that, about half way through the 1st season.
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:18
Isn’t it like 6 years old?
Loftus
January 25, 2016 at 13:19
them boobies are timeless 😛
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:20
By Jupiter’s cock you are right!
Loftus
January 25, 2016 at 13:20
Now that you mention it i think you share bit of that as well. O_o
RinceThis
January 25, 2016 at 13:22
I don’t remember! It was too long ago!
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 13:47
yeah but I don’t think it was on local TV back then…
ElNicko
January 25, 2016 at 20:56
Lucy Lawless was a minx in that show !!
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 12:58
I’ve found US Test 1 works for my connection but it does seem to change as Netflix tries to block Unotelly. I’ve had to change the US selection a few times but there is always one that does work.
Francois Knoetze
January 25, 2016 at 13:13
Was wondering about this! on my laptop at work to check and Netflix on my bone at home was still running solid for the past weeks without any issues or blocking.
Milesh Bhana
January 25, 2016 at 13:14
I gave up. Switched to Telkom LTE, because DSL got too unstable. Since then, it’s stupidly slow. I’m convinced that Telkom LTE are shaping this type of traffic. I used to get 720p on 3mb DSL, now getting about 240p with frequent buffering on 40mbps LTE.
I’ve since switched to Plex 🙂
Alessandro Barbosa
January 25, 2016 at 21:03
I’m on Telkom LTE and have had no such issues for the past three months. Definitely isn’t shaped
Milesh Bhana
January 25, 2016 at 22:47
Found out more today, tried other DNS Services. UnblockUS said that they’d blacklisted Telkom LTE because they do something called Transparent Proxing. It still works, but the performance is horrible. Are you on that recent UNcapped Deal they had?
Original Heretic
January 25, 2016 at 13:31
There’s always going to be a way around these kinds of blocks. This is the internet. Or Sparta.
Fnuik
January 25, 2016 at 14:01
Maybe a stupid question, but why would one pay for a service like unotelly when you can get free dns settings all over the internet that actually works?
I just tried it at work and the free dns settings really does work. What I do not know is if there is any performance issues etc.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 15:26
Not sure about performance issues but the ability to to change my Netflix region while the wife is watching Hulu makes it worthwhile for me
Fnuik
January 25, 2016 at 15:34
OK so basically you pay for the extra features.
Another question. If i’ve got the dns settings on my ps4, will that make me play US servers if I play a game like destiny?
Guild
January 25, 2016 at 15:37
Don’t think so. Haven’t tried with Destiny but with Black Ops 3 I’ve been finding and playing local lobbies
Fnuik
January 25, 2016 at 15:40
Cool, guess I just have to try and see what happens.
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 16:22
No it doesn’t, unotelly only ‘fakes’ your IP for certain things.. playing on US servers would suck though. The amount of lag would be insane
miaau
January 25, 2016 at 16:02
My netflix has not worked in almost two weeks from home.
I get to 25% on the Xbox and it stops dead. Also, on laptops (android tablet as well), it just does not stream, allows me to select a show but then just does not start it.
Other streaming stuff works (bbc iplayer in particular).
I use UnuTelly, but just the UnoDns option. Should I upgrade, then?
Gavin Mannion
January 25, 2016 at 16:21
I’m not sure of the levels but I only use the DNS, just log onto the site and click Dynamo and change your region.. should start working again
miaau
January 25, 2016 at 16:38
Ah, I saw the option for Dynamo is now open to me as well, when I checked ages ago (last year) it seemed to only be for VPN users and since all was working I stopped looking.
Been frustrating as hell. thanks, will try tonight again.
Geoffrey Tim
January 25, 2016 at 17:12
Yeah, and set it to the US Legacy ADA option as shown above – fixed my own streaming issues like magic.
nick
April 1, 2016 at 14:57
for anyone else coming here, xbox and ps versions of netflix hardcode dns settings in the app. you have to add a static route to your router and or muck about with your firewall to force it to use unotelly. connecting from a pc/laptop should still work though