Netflix Wants to Make VPN Piracy Obsolete

[shamu726]

In recent months Hollywood has pushed Netflix to ensure that VPN users can't access their services. Netflix honors these requests, but according to CEO Reed Hastings there's a better way to deal with the issue. The company would like to get rid of Hollywood's geographical restrictions entirely and render 'VPN piracy' obsolete.

After years of waiting, Netflix officially launches in Australia today.

As a result, the tens of thousands of Aussie “VPN-pirates” who already used the U.S. version through a loophole, can now use it legally in their home country.

While Netflix’s rollout is a step in the right direction, the content selection will also be somewhat of a disappointment to those who are used to the U.S. offering. Because of complicated licensing agreements Netflix has a much more limited content library Down Under.

For the movie and TV studios geographical licensing agreements are a core part of their business. However, it also means that many Aussie pirates won’t be canceling their VPN subscriptions just yet.

Speaking out on the controversial VPN use, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings says that the problem can be fixed if the industry starts to offer the same content globally, without artificial barriers.

According to Hastings the VPN issue is a relatively small problem compared to traditional forms of piracy, and relatively easy to make obsolete.

“The VPN thing is a small little asterisk compared to piracy,” Reed notes. “Piracy is really the problem around the world.”

According to Netflix the ‘VPN pirates’ are willing to pay, they just can’t get what they want through their local Netflix.

“The basic solution is for Netflix to get global and have its content be the same all around the world so there’s no incentive to [use a VPN]. Then we can work on the more important part which is piracy,” Hastings says.

The availability issue is fixable, Hastings believes, although it’s questionable whether Hollywood is ready to switch to global licensing deals.

Lacking availability is at the root of both traditional and VPN piracy and Netflix hopes that the industry will address this problem. If that’s done, they can focus on those pirates who simply don’t want to pay.

“The key thing about piracy is that some fraction of it is because [users] couldn’t get the content. That part we can fix. Some part of piracy however is because they just don’t want to pay. That’s a harder part. As an industry, we need to fix global content,” Netflix’s CEO says.

Hastings’ comments are in line with the stance of Europe’s Vice-President for the Digital Single Market Andrus Ansip. The EU commissioner previously called for the abolition of Netflix’s geographical restrictions in Europe, labeling them as “discrimination”.

Source: TorrentFreak

[CODYQX4]

Only in the minds of lunatics could two paid for services be pirating. That whole industry really doesn't want to make money, or they'd stop the stupidity and let them stream globally on Day 1.

[steven36]

You said the magic word (Paid) as in not everyone would be able to buy it . Only way you would slow down piracy if you had many sites with free content on them like the music businesses is doing . And still there's a problem with it because people still pirate music . It would not even stop netflix being pirated if they lifted restrictions . All ways big services push for people who have loads of money and wiss on the poor . ;)

[bkm]

This makes no sense to me. Assuredly if these Australian users are smart enough to use a VPN to access the Netflix than they would be doubly smart enough to just download the content straight away from newsgroup, torrent etc. So why go through all that hassle of VPN? Exactly, they are not so all this "Foreign people are using Netflix through VPNs" is BS

[steven36]

This makes no sense to me. Assuredly if these Australian users are smart enough to use a VPN to access the Netflix than they would be doubly smart enough to just download the content straight away from newsgroup, torrent etc. So why go through all that hassle of VPN? Exactly, they are not so all this "Foreign people are using Netflix through VPNs" is BS

Netfilx is dreaming though , Australian users want be able watch the something on there Netfilx as the USA does. Even free /paid ones in the USA like Hulu are being blocked even and many videos are locked for a week or more unless you buy Hulu plus for USA users . You can watch it on your TV or pirate it way before it becomes out for free on the internet. And the Movie and TV businesses would lose all that money they get from selling DVD ,Bluray and VOD off shore . MPAA is only looking out for themselves not to make Netfilx more rich. besides some TV shows they make Netfilx provides most movies when they get them there out to the shops as well they already been pirated by then . Netfilx is a paid service not noting to do with file-sharing and all those Aussies that paid for vpn to watch it didnt even put a dent in file-sharing so how is this file-sharing news? When your paying or getting paid its not sharing .