VPN 101: Using VPN to stream video from websites

VPN or Virtual Private Networks are being used more and more today. Some use it for privacy, some use it for bypassing web-filters but most people use it for getting access to websites they would not normally have access to in their current locations( e.g. using Hulu's streaming service in Japan to watch videos only available in the US).

The VPN basically"fools" the website into thinking that you are in another country( because your connection is re-routed through a web server in that country). For example the VPN server is in the US while you are in Spain, you connect to the VPN server and all your traffic goes through it hence "fooling" websites into thinking that you are surfing the web from the US.

There are many options but I've found that the best ones are HotspotShield( FREE) and ExpatShield(FREE). HotspotShield has servers in the US, while ExpatShield gives you the IP of a computer in the UK( if you want to stream from BBC iPlayer).

HotspotShield(Windows and Mac)

ExpatShield( Windows)

Both of these programs are relatively easy to install, just download and run them( HotspotShield tries to install it's own toolbar so don't forget to uncheck the option to install it)

Websites that this is useful for:

• Netflix( Netflix isn't available everywhere and if you want to use it's streaming service where it is unavailable use HotspotShield, to register with Netflix you need a US credit card)
• Hulu( Lots of shows and movies available but only for people in the US, with HotspotShield you can stream these videos everywhere)
• BBC iPlayer( BBC iPlayer allows you to watch BBC programming for the past 7 days online, use ExpatShield to access the content)
• Justin.tv( People in some countries are getting the message s"we've reached the maximum number of streams for your country", if you download either of these VPNs you can hopefully watch your stream without any interruption
• YouTube( although the majority of videos are available in most countries some videos still remain unavailable due restrictions of the uploader, if you want to watch any of those videos then using HotspotShield should help)

If you want to stream Netflix on your Apple TV however you have to get a paid version of the VPN( Strong VPN), this company also sells pre-programmed routers. Average costs are about 60-70$ a year.

Hope this helps all the people who've been wanting to access websites but haven't been able to :)