Geo-Blocking | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Mon, 02 Oct 2023 08:59:51 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png Geo-Blocking | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 EU court upholds fine against Valve over PC game geo-blocking https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-court-upholds-fine-against-valve-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-court-upholds-fine-against-valve-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/#respond Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:14:29 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=632044 Back in April 2019, we learned that the European Commission was launching an anti-trust investigation into content geo-blocking. The investigation looked into several huge game publishers including Valve, ZeniMax, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media. Ultimately, the EU fined the companies for geo-blocking practices in 2021. Valve of course appealed, as it …

The post EU court upholds fine against Valve over PC game geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Back in April 2019, we learned that the European Commission was launching an anti-trust investigation into content geo-blocking. The investigation looked into several huge game publishers including Valve, ZeniMax, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media. Ultimately, the EU fined the companies for geo-blocking practices in 2021. Valve of course appealed, as it has done many times in the past when fines are levied. Now two years later, Valve has lost its appeal. 

In the case of Valve, the EU fined the company €1.6 million. Other companies listed in the complaint were also fined, with ZeniMax being asked for €1.6 million, Focus Home Interactive taking on a €2.8 million fine and the likes of Capcom and Bandai Namco being asked for less than €400,000 each.

Valve appealed the EU's anti-trust ruling, arguing that copyright holders should have the right to charge different prices in certain regions. However, the EU General Court upheld the ruling this week, stating that copyright law “does not guarantee the opportunity to demand the highest possible remuneration or to engage in conduct such as to lead to artificial price differences between the partitioned national markets”.

For a little background, a number of publishers were found to have been geo-blocking activation keys for PC games purchased in certain EU countries, including the likes of Romania, Estonia, Latvia, Hungary, Poland, Lithuania and Czechia. The geo-blocks were in place to stop customers from using VPNs to take advantage of lower game prices in these countries. However, doing so is also in breach of the EU's single market rules.

It is unclear if Valve will file another appeal, pushing the case up to a higher court.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: What do you all think of this? Should publishers be allowed to make region-restricted activation keys for games if it enables lower prices in countries with lower average income?

The post EU court upholds fine against Valve over PC game geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-court-upholds-fine-against-valve-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/feed/ 0
EU fines Valve, ZeniMax and other publishers over PC game geo-blocking https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-fines-valve-zenimax-and-other-publishers-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-fines-valve-zenimax-and-other-publishers-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/#respond Wed, 20 Jan 2021 13:06:52 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=501919 Back in April 2019, we learned that the European Commission was launching an anti-trust investigation into content geo-blocking. The investigation looked into several huge game publishers including Valve, ZeniMax, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media. The investigation has since concluded, with the EU handing down a €7.8 million fine, which is split …

The post EU fines Valve, ZeniMax and other publishers over PC game geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Back in April 2019, we learned that the European Commission was launching an anti-trust investigation into content geo-blocking. The investigation looked into several huge game publishers including Valve, ZeniMax, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media. The investigation has since concluded, with the EU handing down a €7.8 million fine, which is split amongst the publishers.

Following its investigation, the Commission said that these publishers geo-blocked around 100 PC games, preventing them from being played outside of certain EU countries. This is deemed to be against the EU's digital single market, which is in place to ensure all EU member countries can access the same content without barriers.

Geo-blocking was being used to prevent games being activated outside of Czechia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Usually, these geo-blocks are in place to allow lower game prices in these regions due to lower average income. Regular game buyers would notice this and use VPNs to buy games at lower prices by spoofing their physical location. Geo-blocks were put in place to prevent this from happening.

Still, geo-blocking is against the EU's single market rules and as a result, Valve and the five PC game publishers involved in the investigation will be fined. For Valve, the fine will be €1.6 million, ZeniMax will also be paying €1.6 million, meanwhile Focus Home Interactive is taking away the largest fine, coming in at €2.8 million. Koch Media will have to pay €1 million, Capcom will pay €396,000 and Bandai Namco will pay €340,000.

The European Commission reduced fines for some of these companies due to their level of cooperation in the investigation.

KitGuru Says: What do you all think of this? Should publishers be allowed to make region-restricted activation keys for games if it enables lower prices in countries with lower average income?

The post EU fines Valve, ZeniMax and other publishers over PC game geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-fines-valve-zenimax-and-other-publishers-over-pc-game-geo-blocking/feed/ 0
Valve to fight EU antitrust charges while other publishers settle https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/valve-to-fight-eu-antitrust-charges-while-other-publishers-settle/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/valve-to-fight-eu-antitrust-charges-while-other-publishers-settle/#respond Fri, 30 Aug 2019 10:14:40 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=423593 Back in April, we learned that the European Commission was investigating major game publishers and platform holders over content geo-blocking. Valve/Steam, Capcom, ZeniMax, Koch Media, Bandai Namco and Focus Home Interactive were all named as part of the antitrust investigation. Most of the publishers plan to settle in an effort to lessen imposed fines but …

The post Valve to fight EU antitrust charges while other publishers settle first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Back in April, we learned that the European Commission was investigating major game publishers and platform holders over content geo-blocking. Valve/Steam, Capcom, ZeniMax, Koch Media, Bandai Namco and Focus Home Interactive were all named as part of the antitrust investigation. Most of the publishers plan to settle in an effort to lessen imposed fines but Valve will be looking to fight the EU's antitrust allegations.

As reported by Reuters, Valve wants a closed-doors hearing with EU officials to make its case, while the other five companies plan to settle with the EU- a move that will grant a discount on imposed fines for breaking EU regulations.

We don't know the details of Valve's defence yet but the company has not been very successful when it comes to legal proceedings outside of the US. The company was forced to pay up for breaking consumer laws in Australia in recent years and has faced investigations elsewhere too.

In this case, the European Commission claims that Valve, Bandai Namco, Capcom, ZeniMax, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media violated antitrust laws by putting geographic restrictions on certain games being sold. These blocks are put in place to avoid people from richer countries taking advantage of lower regional pricing available in poorer countries.

On Valve's end, the company claims that region locking only applies to around three percent of all games available on Steam. The European Commission wants a true single market for digital content across the EU, but in some countries, the average salary is much lower than others. Publishers will control regional pricing in order to make games more accessible for purchase in places with lower average income and block those outside of those countries from purchasing the content cheaper. The EU would rather have standardised pricing across all of Europe instead.

KitGuru Says: While normally I am against the idea of geo-blocking, lowering game prices in regions with a lower average income doesn't seem like a bad idea. Enforcing higher prices would just result in higher levels of piracy. We'll have to wait and see whether or not Valve's defence is convincing enough.

The post Valve to fight EU antitrust charges while other publishers settle first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/valve-to-fight-eu-antitrust-charges-while-other-publishers-settle/feed/ 0
EU Commission launches antitrust investigation into Valve and other publishers for geo-blocking https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-launches-antitrust-investigation-into-valve-and-other-publishers-for-geo-blocking/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-launches-antitrust-investigation-into-valve-and-other-publishers-for-geo-blocking/#respond Sat, 06 Apr 2019 08:00:41 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=409527 The European Commission tends to launch several large antitrust investigations each year. While most of the ones we report on tend to fall in the tech realm, this week, the EU is turning its attention to gaming. More specifically, the commission is investigating publishers and platform holders over content geo-blocking, with the likes of Steam …

The post EU Commission launches antitrust investigation into Valve and other publishers for geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
The European Commission tends to launch several large antitrust investigations each year. While most of the ones we report on tend to fall in the tech realm, this week, the EU is turning its attention to gaming. More specifically, the commission is investigating publishers and platform holders over content geo-blocking, with the likes of Steam being targeted.

In a statement issued today, the European Commission outlined its investigation plans. Currently, the EC will be looking into the business practices of Valve, Bandai Namco, Capcom, ZeniMax, Focus Home Interactive and Koch Media. Of course, there are some big names on that list, with Valve owning Steam, ZeniMax owning Bethesda and Koch Media holding ownership over Deep Silver.

According to the commission, each company on the list has potentially violated antitrust laws by putting geographic restrictions on certain games being sold. This primarily affects Eastern Europe, including countries like Poland, Latvia, Hungary, Estonia, Lithuania, Czechia, Romania and Slovakia.

The issue is that in some of these countries, games are sold at lower cost due to the lower average income of residents. Geo-blocks are put in place on activation keys to avoid people from richer countries from taking advantage of the lower regional price. The EU would rather see a baseline sales strategy applied across all EU countries, similar to the USA's $60 standard price point.

The European Commission is investigating whether this geo-blocking of content is unjustified. Judging by the full statement, the commission is currently of the opinion that it is. As the holder of Steam, the largest PC gaming distribution platform, Valve is going to be under the most scrutiny here. As a result, a Valve spokesperson has already issued a statement on the matter.

Valve is of the opinion that it is not liable for region locks under these circumstances and that the EC's view is “not supported by applicable law”. Of course, Valve also thought it was exempt from consumer protection laws in Australia once upon a time- and that did not end up working out in their favour.

KitGuru Says: The EU's investigation into these publishers is still in the early stages. I'm sure we'll see more statements and arguments from both sides over the coming months. Even if an antitrust ruling is made, there is an appeal process in place that will extend the case even longer. We'll be keeping an eye on this to see where it goes from here.

The post EU Commission launches antitrust investigation into Valve and other publishers for geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-launches-antitrust-investigation-into-valve-and-other-publishers-for-geo-blocking/feed/ 0
The EU’s anti geo-blocking rules are now in place https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eus-anti-geo-blocking-rules-are-now-in-place/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eus-anti-geo-blocking-rules-are-now-in-place/#respond Mon, 02 Apr 2018 16:07:28 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=369113 In February last year, the European Union began preparing new laws to do away with region blocking on services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video when traveling. It has taken a while, but the new law is finally in effect, allowing those who subscribe to streaming services to access their home library of content while …

The post The EU’s anti geo-blocking rules are now in place first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
In February last year, the European Union began preparing new laws to do away with region blocking on services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video when traveling. It has taken a while, but the new law is finally in effect, allowing those who subscribe to streaming services to access their home library of content while crossing borders.

The new rules cover any digital content subscription, so it will also count for things like Spotify or Apple Music. With these rules now in place, users can subscribe to a service in their home country and travel throughout Europe without losing access. It is estimated that at least 29 million people will benefit from this change.

This is a particularly important step as far as Netflix is concerned, as the library of content can differ quite dramatically depending on which country you're in. Italy only has around 17 percent of the full US Netflix library, meanwhile France has 33 percent of the same content.

Unfortunately, due to Brexit, those of us in the UK won't benefit from these changes. Though it does mean that EU citizens visiting the UK will get access to our Netflix library, which contains 38 percent of the same content found on Netflix in the US.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Geo-blocking has always been an annoyance in the video streaming world, so its good to see it finally tackled. What do you guys think of the EU's new ‘digital portability' rules?

The post The EU’s anti geo-blocking rules are now in place first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eus-anti-geo-blocking-rules-are-now-in-place/feed/ 0
New EU laws aim to finally do away with content geoblocking for streaming https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/new-eu-laws-aim-to-finally-do-away-with-content-geoblocking-for-streaming/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/new-eu-laws-aim-to-finally-do-away-with-content-geoblocking-for-streaming/#respond Wed, 08 Feb 2017 20:19:41 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=321244 The European Union is about to make video streaming across borders a lot easier as this week plans were drawn up to enforce new laws that do away with geo-blocking content once and for all. These new laws will affect services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video and could come into effect as early as …

The post New EU laws aim to finally do away with content geoblocking for streaming first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
The European Union is about to make video streaming across borders a lot easier as this week plans were drawn up to enforce new laws that do away with geo-blocking content once and for all. These new laws will affect services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video and could come into effect as early as next year.

This essentially means that those travelling throughout Europe will still be able to access the content available in their home country. If a UK resident started up a Netflix subscription, they should still be able to access all of the same content if they travel to France, Germany, Spain or other EU countries.

As 9to5Mac points out, these new laws would not mean that Netflix or Amazon would have to offer the same library of content across all EU countries. It just means that if a user signs up in a particular country, they should be able to view that country's library of content no matter which EU member state they choose to travel to later.

These new rules won't just affect video services either, this is also aimed at music streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music, so it'll benefit Europeans in more than one area.

KitGuru Says: Obviously, rules like this won't necessarily apply to the UK once Brexit is over and done with so services like Sky Go may be able to get around allowing viewers outside of the UK entirely, which is rather unfortunate. Locking content based on region has always been one of the more annoying things about streaming services on the web. 

The post New EU laws aim to finally do away with content geoblocking for streaming first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/new-eu-laws-aim-to-finally-do-away-with-content-geoblocking-for-streaming/feed/ 0
Netflix insists its VPN blockade isn’t hurting business https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/netflix-insists-its-vpn-blockade-isnt-hurting-business/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/netflix-insists-its-vpn-blockade-isnt-hurting-business/#comments Tue, 19 Apr 2016 16:10:08 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=289869 It has been a few months since Netflix officially announced that it would be taking a harder stance against VPN users and those trying to circumvent geographical content restrictions. This has been a fairly controversial move but apparently, it isn't having an effect at all on the company's pocket. During the Netflix quarterly earnings report …

The post Netflix insists its VPN blockade isn’t hurting business first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
It has been a few months since Netflix officially announced that it would be taking a harder stance against VPN users and those trying to circumvent geographical content restrictions. This has been a fairly controversial move but apparently, it isn't having an effect at all on the company's pocket.

During the Netflix quarterly earnings report last night, Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, said that despite the complaints and 40,000 people signing a petition to change Netflix's new policy, the company's earnings haven't seen a hit. In-fact, the streaming service has continued to see growth in markets across the world.

Netflix-Versus-Movie-Theaters-and-Why-Netflix-Wins-600x360

There were plenty of analysts predicted a hit to Netflix's financials following its VPN ban too but when asked about the impact of this, Reed Hastings brushed the complaints off: “It’s a very small but quite vocal minority. So it’s really inconsequential to us, as you could see in the Q1 results”.

On the other side of the coin, VPN services are struggling to combat the new Netflix restrictions. At first, Netflix used static IP addresses for its geo-blocking checks, which VPN providers could easily bypass by forwarding on traffic to a ‘clean' IP. However, since then, Netflix has stepped things up significantly and uses hundreds of regularly changing domains.

According to a VPN provider talking with TorrentFreak, this new method of enforcing geo-blocks is much more expensive for providers to circumvent as it requires forwarding all Netflix traffic through its own servers instead of just the packets trying to catch your geo-location.

KitGuru Says: A lot of paid VPN services no longer work with Netflix and despite earlier predictions, it doesn't appear to be slowing down the streaming service's business at all. Are any of you still using Netflix? Did the VPN ban cause you to cancel your subscription? 

The post Netflix insists its VPN blockade isn’t hurting business first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/netflix-insists-its-vpn-blockade-isnt-hurting-business/feed/ 5
74 percent of fiction TV licensing agreements call for geo-blocking in EU https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/74-percent-of-fiction-tv-licensing-agreements-call-for-geo-blocking-in-eu/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/74-percent-of-fiction-tv-licensing-agreements-call-for-geo-blocking-in-eu/#comments Mon, 21 Mar 2016 20:06:21 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=287516 Right now, the European Commission is going through an antitrust inquiry, which has revealed a few interesting tidbits about the state of geographical content blocks throughout Europe, with apparently 74 percent of fiction TV licensing deals demanding that blocks be placed to restrict content to specific countries inside of the EU. The EU currently wants …

The post 74 percent of fiction TV licensing agreements call for geo-blocking in EU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Right now, the European Commission is going through an antitrust inquiry, which has revealed a few interesting tidbits about the state of geographical content blocks throughout Europe, with apparently 74 percent of fiction TV licensing deals demanding that blocks be placed to restrict content to specific countries inside of the EU.

The EU currently wants companies selling digital content to citizens within Europe to do so across the whole continent, removing region blocks from the equation. After surveying retailers in the EU and companies offering digital content, the Commission's findings have been made public, showing the state of content licensing in Europe right now.

geoblocking-640x320

Image source. 

Around 1400 companies responded from all 28 member states. When it comes to physical items, content not making it to certain countries often comes down to retailers not wanting to do business abroad. However, when it comes to digital content, things play out quite differently.

As a TorrentFreak report points out, 68 percent of digital content providers told the Commission that they do use geo-blocking on certain countries within the EU and 59 percent of those said that this was due to contract terms. When it comes to specific types of content, geo-blocking rates differ, for instance, fiction TV is blocked on a country by country basis 74 percent of the time, while films are blocked 66 percent of the time.

This is all useful information for the European Commission's case to try and wipe out geographical content blocks within Europe.

KitGuru Says: Geo-blocking rates are pretty high, especially when it comes to TV and film. However, hopefully this will go down significantly depending on how the EU's antitrust case goes. Do any of you have to deal with geo-blocks on a regular basis? 

The post 74 percent of fiction TV licensing agreements call for geo-blocking in EU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/74-percent-of-fiction-tv-licensing-agreements-call-for-geo-blocking-in-eu/feed/ 5
EU Commission may make geo-blocking invalid in Europe https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/eu-commission-may-make-geo-blocking-invalid-in-europe/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/eu-commission-may-make-geo-blocking-invalid-in-europe/#comments Wed, 09 Dec 2015 12:08:39 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=277650 As much as digital streaming companies like Netflix and Amazon have offered us more content in the past few years than has ever been so easily accessible before, one major frustration remains: geo-blocking. However in the future we may all have the same content available, as the European Commission (EUC) has presented a plan to …

The post EU Commission may make geo-blocking invalid in Europe first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
As much as digital streaming companies like Netflix and Amazon have offered us more content in the past few years than has ever been so easily accessible before, one major frustration remains: geo-blocking. However in the future we may all have the same content available, as the European Commission (EUC) has presented a plan to abolish the practice altogether.

The problem doesn't necessarily stem from a perceived ‘unfairness' that some people can watch certain content and others can't, but that people travelling to different European countries cannot use the service they pay for in the same manner as they can at home. That just shouldn't be, according to the EUC, which is why it's proposed that all geo-blocking within EU nations be abolished.

This would include countries where services are not officially accessible just yet. As TorrentFreak explains, this would allow someone in one country to enjoy a service in another that is not officially available to citizens there just yet.

Presumably people in those nations could then create foreign accounts and login using them, but it's not clear.

eucomiision

“We want to ensure the portability of content across borders. People who legally buy content – films, books, football matches, TV series – must be able to carry it with them anywhere they go in Europe,” said VP for the Digital Single Market, Andrus Ansip.

This isn't likely to please media companies, which have aggressively blocked their content from showing in countries where license fees aren't paid for. Netflix and other services however have been more than happy with the idea of killing geo-blocking for some time, as it would let them offer wider content libraries to users without individual license fees for different regions.

It's why Netflix previously didn't do much to stop people using VPNs or DNS changes to access its service from different countries. It has made some moves more recently, but is still keen to leave its customers to access the service as they see fit.

This is just part of the copyright proposals that will be debated next year, but the EUC hopes that it can push for an end to EU geo-blocking by 2017.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: An end to geo-blocking would be great. Make it universal and give us access to U.S. Netflix without resorting to VPN or DNS changes and we're golden.

The post EU Commission may make geo-blocking invalid in Europe first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/eu-commission-may-make-geo-blocking-invalid-in-europe/feed/ 1
EU Commission opens anti-trust case over geo-blocking https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-opens-anti-trust-case-over-geo-blocking/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-opens-anti-trust-case-over-geo-blocking/#comments Fri, 24 Jul 2015 21:23:56 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=260697 The EU Commission has opened up some questionable anti-trust cases in recent times but it looks like it has finally launched one that we can all get on board with. The EU has launched an anti-trust investigation against several US movie studios and even Sky UK in an effort to put a stop to the …

The post EU Commission opens anti-trust case over geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
The EU Commission has opened up some questionable anti-trust cases in recent times but it looks like it has finally launched one that we can all get on board with. The EU has launched an anti-trust investigation against several US movie studios and even Sky UK in an effort to put a stop to the geographical blocking of content online.

More often than not, streaming services have different libraries of content in different territories, which is often due to complicated licensing agreements between media companies. This week in a statement of objections sent to Sky UK, NBC, Paramount, Sony, Fox, Warner Bros and Disney, the EU commission outlined its issues with geo-blocking practises.

Not available

“European consumers want to watch the pay-TV channels of their choice regardless of where they live or travel in the EU. Our investigation shows that they cannot do this today, also because licensing agreements between the major film studios and Sky UK do not allow consumers in other EU countries to access Sky’s UK and Irish pay-TV services, via satellite or online.”

Under European rules, consumers should be able to access services regardless of where they are located within the continent. So this may not grant EU countries with the same content as the US, but the laws are there to make sure that every country in the EU has access to the same content.

To sum up, the EU Commission is aiming to end “unjustified geo-blocking”, which is also described as a “discriminatory practise used for commercial reasons”. Sky, along with the six US movie studios named in the objection notice, will now have to respond to the investigation. A final decision on the outcome will take a few months, according to Torrent Freak. 

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Ge0-blocking is definitely an annoying practise, though it is easy enough to get around. It would be nice if studios would start licensing their content to streaming services for the world wide web as a whole, rather than limiting certain shows and films to specific countries. 

The post EU Commission opens anti-trust case over geo-blocking first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/eu-commission-opens-anti-trust-case-over-geo-blocking/feed/ 5
The EU Commission aiming to get rid of geo-blocks https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eu-commission-aiming-to-get-rid-of-geo-blocks/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eu-commission-aiming-to-get-rid-of-geo-blocks/#comments Wed, 06 May 2015 19:21:38 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=248344 The European Commission has announced plans to create a single digital market that will stretch across Europe, removing geo-blocks for shows across the continent. Copyright laws will also be updated to fit in better with the digital age. The EU Commission has detailed 16 policies that will help it achieve its ambition to consolidate the …

The post The EU Commission aiming to get rid of geo-blocks first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
The European Commission has announced plans to create a single digital market that will stretch across Europe, removing geo-blocks for shows across the continent. Copyright laws will also be updated to fit in better with the digital age.

The EU Commission has detailed 16 policies that will help it achieve its ambition to consolidate the 28 markets across Europe in to one for digital content. The first step is to provide better access for consumers and business to digital goods and services in Europe. This will include removing geo-blocks on content, which will make services like Netflix more accessible between countries.

European_Commission.svg

To make this all work, the current copyright system will need a bit of a reform in order to ensure that those who buy content in one country can still access it anywhere else in Europe. The hope is that services like BBC Iplayer and Sky Go will also become available. The BBC has said in a statement that it will be looking in to removing restrictions for those wanting to use the Iplayer in the EU but so far, Sky and Netflix have not come out in support of the EU's new plans.

EU Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker said: “Today we lay the groundwork for Europe's digital future. I want to see pan-continental telecoms networks, digital services that cross borders and a wave of innovative European startups. I want to see every consumer getting the best deals and every business accessing the widest market – wherever they are in Europe.”

“Exactly a year ago, I promised to make a fully digital single market one of my top priorities. Today, we are making good on that promise. The 16 steps of our Digital Single Market Strategy will help make the single market fit for a digital age.”

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: This is a progressive first step. Hopefully if copyright reform pays off in the EU, other countries will follow and eventually lead to just having one global market for digital content, instead of licensing content on a per region basis.

Via: The Inquirer

The post The EU Commission aiming to get rid of geo-blocks first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/the-eu-commission-aiming-to-get-rid-of-geo-blocks/feed/ 1
Anti-Piracy initiative requires VPN outside of the US https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/anti-piracy-initiative-requires-vpn-outside-of-the-us/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/anti-piracy-initiative-requires-vpn-outside-of-the-us/#comments Thu, 23 Apr 2015 15:30:36 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=246410 It seems that Hollywood has completely missed the point once again. MPAA backed anti-piracy initiative, WheretoWatch.com is a tool designed to point consumers towards legal alternatives to piracy but there is a catch, it is only accessible to those in the US, meaning a VPN is required if people elsewhere in the world want to …

The post Anti-Piracy initiative requires VPN outside of the US first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
It seems that Hollywood has completely missed the point once again. MPAA backed anti-piracy initiative, WheretoWatch.com is a tool designed to point consumers towards legal alternatives to piracy but there is a catch, it is only accessible to those in the US, meaning a VPN is required if people elsewhere in the world want to view it.

WheretoWatch was made in an attempt to counter the argument that there are no legal alternatives to piracy for certain shows and movies. As you would expect, the MPAA is urging theaters and customers to spread the word about the site in an effort to give exposure to legal places to watch shows and movies.

wheretowatch1

Unfortunately, there are still millions of people outside of the US who are expected to consume content legally but they often don’t have access to the tools needed. Not only can non-US citizens not subscribe to services like HBO Now (which is actively cutting off VPN using customers), or Hulu Plus but now they can’t even access the database designed to offer legal alternatives to piracy.

Putting a geo-block on something that is designed to help alleviate the piracy problem just seems to be missing the point.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Geo-blocking is usually used to protect a company from legal issues that stem from providing content to an area where it has not purchased the rights to broadcast. However, putting a geo-block on an anti-piracy tool just seems like a bad idea. It’s not like non-US citizens don’t know about the services available in the US already…

Source: TorrentFreak

The post Anti-Piracy initiative requires VPN outside of the US first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/anti-piracy-initiative-requires-vpn-outside-of-the-us/feed/ 3
HBO cracks down on Now subscribers outside the US https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/hbo-cracks-down-on-now-subscribers-outside-the-us/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/hbo-cracks-down-on-now-subscribers-outside-the-us/#comments Tue, 21 Apr 2015 13:40:18 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=246068 HBO is cutting off those who are paying for the on-demand HBO Now service from outside of the US with a VPN. The network has sent emails to people around the world, who were found to be using tools to watch Game of Thrones from countries like Canada, Germany, Australia and the UK. HBO has …

The post HBO cracks down on Now subscribers outside the US first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
HBO is cutting off those who are paying for the on-demand HBO Now service from outside of the US with a VPN. The network has sent emails to people around the world, who were found to be using tools to watch Game of Thrones from countries like Canada, Germany, Australia and the UK.

HBO has said that it decided to cut these customers off as it does not have the rights to broadcast shows in countries outside of the US. HBO Now is currently a US only service, which was introduced to give people a way to watch HBO shows without a cable subscription. The hope was also that it would lower piracy rates on shows like Game of Thrones within the US.

07-hbo-now.w529.h352.2x

Those who did receive an email from HBO will be cut off from today onwards. However, if you do live within the US and received an email by mistake, then you can work around it by contacting them.

Aside from that, it is not currently known how many HBO Now subscribers were actually based outside of the US. If the number was significant enough, then maybe it will encourage the network to start pushing for global rights to shows and we can finally do away with these geo-blocks on services.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Using a VPN to access content not available in your region is a very common practise, particularly among Netflix subscribers. The problem is, using a VPN circumvents specific content deals made within each region, which can put a strain on business relationships and also cause some legal issues. If global licensing was the standard, then this wouldn’t be a problem but it will take quite some time to get to that point.

Via: The BBC

The post HBO cracks down on Now subscribers outside the US first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/matthew-wilson/hbo-cracks-down-on-now-subscribers-outside-the-us/feed/ 3