Auntie strikes back!
 

What would we do without all these techie problems to deal with as expats?

Presently I'm engaged on two fronts - the first with our cable TV provider and its variable picture quality, but, more importantly, now with access to BBC iPlayer via the PC. Was happily using a VPN service for over 6 months to view and download the large choice of programmes on that wonderful site - then a week ago nothing would work. Then I tried their alternative Smart DNS Proxy. But it turns out not to be smart enough to beat the BBC's new detection system!

A Google search indicated that the BBC's purge on suspect UK IP addresses actually started last October. A report had claimed there were 60m people worldwide unblocking their iPlayer!

Have put in a complaint to the relevant company, which I did recommend to people here in a previous post...so will see what they say ... and wondering if I would get a refund for the unexpired 6 months. There seem to be some specialist DNS Proxy operations around at reasonable cost - one quotes about 35 pounds a year with a 7 day free trial, and I may eventually switch. But the Beeb might also catch up with them soon?

One can use other streaming sites and Bit Torrent - but you can't beat the iPlayer for the choice it gives for both catch up viewing and downloading.

Anybody here having the same problem?

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I've been using smartdnsproxy.com for a few months in Malaysia and haven't had any problems. They did a deal just before Christmas for 2 years at $49.95 but that has probably ended now.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Your problem is that you are trying to do something that is inherently illegal, so, no matter who you choose to use they BBC can, and will, close their access down. It's the same in the UK with torrent search engines, the major internet service providers keep blocking them, so there is always a battle between the internet providers and the website people who have to change domains regularly.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Something is either illegal in a jurisdiction or not and it is only illegal to watch in the UK without a TV licence, not abroad. It is easy to watch live UK TV abroad if you know where and how and there are many services offering to unblock the iPlayer. The BBC may have stopped the users of some of the cheaper services only. All that will do is make it a bit more expensive for expats and people in the UK who like to use VPNs.

They are looking, apparently. at issuing British holiday makers going abroad with some sort of PIN code, so they do recognise one issue with them. Whether they would ever open up the UK iPlayer on subscription worldwide is debatable and anyway I'm not interested in watching Sherlock or Dr Who...more BBC2 stuff like Newsnight.

Could the iPlayer be blocked unless one can show one has a TV licence? Maybe, but clever people find ways and I am sure the torrent uploaders would then work overtime.

As for qualms ... I don't have any...people in the Netherlands,Eire etc have been watching the BBC for years.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

+1

If a law is not respected then the law is changed - it's called People Power. Copyright laws are currently way behind the curve of popular demand.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

A lot of the problem with iplayer outside the UK and the Beebs attempts to block access is often to do with the various licences that the Beeb have for their programmes. If, say, CBS have the rights to show Eastenders in Canada, then anyone using iplayer in Canada to watch it is detrimental to both the BBC & CBS. It matters not a jot whether you can find ways around it, the BBC have to (try to) stick to the terms of the agreements they make with other broadcasters. As internet here is fairly poor, a VPN in many cases still means stuttering when streaming. I and many other expats use Filmon.com . Perfectly legal, carries all the UK channels- plus around another 400 from around the world- and streaming is free. I pay £6 a month to allow for recording 11 hours worth of programmes at a time and it has worked well for me for over 2 years with only one hiccup which Filmon support sorted within 24 hours. The PIN you speak of for using iplayer when not in UK will I'm sure only be issued to people holding a current TV licence. Maybe the BBC will eventually come up with some form of subscription service but again, this may cause problems with overseas licencing of BBC programmes. Yes, there are the torrents and I have used them in the past since the VPN method was not very satisfactory.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Filmon is not, by any means, perfectly legal and there are on-going proceedings and injunctions against them but this just illustrates that the legal problems lie with the broadcaster making programmes available rather than with an audience capable of receiving them. If Auntie blocks certain IP addresses it is to demonstrate some effort is being made to restrict access to their content in accordance with their licencing arrangements.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

BBC Licence must be on the way out.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

An update. TV When Away as expected wouldn't admit their VPN has been rumbled, but suggested I try their Proxy, which is included in the package. The result was a weird half way house with the ability to watch live BBC but being blocked to download. Since my Broadband is lacking in width at peak times and it's often more convenient anyway to download, that is not any use to me. Don't think they will give me a refund, but I am trying.

Reading around it looks like the only resort is a Smart DNS and TV When Away's is not available for PCs. So I am trying SmartDNS's offering on a generous 14 day free trial - no credit card needed, and early indications are that In Vino Veritas was on the right track as it seems to work fine! Another operator, Unotelly, has a similar offering with a 7 day free trial - but their subscription rates are quite a lot higher than SmartDNS's - $47.95 pa against a very reasonable $34.90 for SmartDNS.

One other thing I have noticed is that Unotelly's servers are in the USA, whereas SmartDNS has them in a number of countries and you pick the two which are nearest to where you are.Whether that makes a difference I don't know. Also very clear set up instructions with SmartDNS and good customer support.

So if SmartDNS keeps it up I will change to them and hope I can get at least another year's UK broadcasting.

Thanks for the reminder about Filmon, Quiltman, but I usually download much more than 10 hours a month and am only interested in watching the BBC or, occasionally, football on ITV, so their recording service is not for me.

Will report again in a couple of weeks

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Raffin, I was not obviously very clear! Filmon for £6 month gives you 11 hours of download space - 1hr free plus 10 hours paid. As soon as you download a programme, you delete it and that time becomes available again. It's not 10 hrs a month.
today I'm downloading 10.6 hrs worth as last night was a good night on UK TV , once downloaded I'll delete them from my Filmon account and reset it for the weekend recordings. There are lots of programmes we watch that never make it onto torrents since they have very limited audience appeal . Things like daytime quizes for example, some documentaries etc which is why I use Filmon. If you like documentaries then try mkvgroup.org as they have virtually all the BBC/ITV/USA documentary series.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I don't know much about this, but the other day I caught the end of a news story saying something about geographical block may become illegal very soon and added that BBC amongst others were going to have to change the way they do business.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

It will likely cause complications for the BBC due to the licencing terms they have for their programmes with other countries. They may have to charge based on your IP and then pay the licencee something because you watch BC on iplayer and not locally.
The news I saw was that the EU wanted people to be able to view the iplayer anywhere in Europe when they travelled, say on holiday. The suggestion was that you'd register your UK address/IP with the Beeb and once abroad could input a code allowing you to watch. Seems a bit of a hassle. It's still all up in the air at the moment.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Thanks for the clarification, Quiltman. Then Filmon could be attractive to some, with its movies on demand included in the package, though I have little interest in watching movies. But it seems to be $14.95 per month now, that's more like 10 pounds a month at the present exchange rate.
It's just that if my present DNS trial ends up a success I would only pay only about 2 pounds per month to unblock a large number of sites worldwide, though I am just interested in the UK ones.
I agree with you about the Torrents - they don't include many of the shorter and more UK oriented programmes. But someone did upload a nice programme about the Crickhowell tax revolt the other day, which I didn't expect.
The BBC Player has improved greatly over the last year and now gives a high quality playback. Did a comparative test recently with an episode of War and Peace from the MV group.and then downloading the same from the iPlayer. The iPlayer quality was much better.
Yes, Stokkevn, I saw that news item too - think it would apply to just the EU if ever,,,. but that would make it interesting because at present there are no regional BBC iPlayer versions..

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Raffin, You are partly correct. Filmon is $14.95 for HD streaming, but further down the page are prices for remote DVR.
FILMON TV FREE LIVE TV MOVIES AND SOCIAL TELEVISION

They show costs for recording. Streaming is free in standard definition but by some quirk, if you DOWNLOAD a programme it downloads in better quality. Certainly we have found the quality of downloaded programmes very good on our 46" Samsung.Maybe fast moving programmes such as sports might show some artefacts but we don't watch sports so it does not bother us! I tried using various VPNs but gave up as t'internet is a bit erratic here and the stuttering got on my wick a bit. Might try again if iplayer is that much better but only twice managed to get a programme to download. We don't stream much due to the time shift. My wife is not getting up at 3.00am to watch Emmerdale for example! Each to their own , find what works best for you and your lifestyle. :)

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Quiltman, Filmon is much too expensive for remote recording only at my level of downloading at around 20 hours a month!
Our internet here is also pretty ropey - bandwidth constricted in the early mornings and at coming home time, regular loss of internet, sometimes just for a few seconds, and, like yours, streaming is often on the margin - sometimes works, sometimes doesn't.
I also don't like to be watching at 3am - unless it is a promising football match and so also prefer downloading, Had no problems doing that with the VPN before and haven't now with the new DNS.
I think VPNs are now no good for unblocking - some slow up the computer and they are all subject to being rumbled, as mine recently was and some I tested last year were. But Smart DNS works just on selected sites in a different away to a VPN and the experts are saying that it is difficult to detect.
Well, let's see. Many of the articles one reads end up with a link to a provider - but at only $2 or $4 a month over a year it's worth a try to get all the UK downloading one wants in the simplest way possible.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

If her indoors wants Emmerdale, Coronation Street, Eastenders or any other daily UK soaps try the link below and just type in whatever you are after ( inc date ), normally available by 07:00hrs our time the day after.

http://www.dailymotion.com/ph/releva...1st+jan+2016/1

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Thanks for this, but again it appears to only stream. Currently I download programmes, stick them on a USB and watch on our TV ,usually in the evening or when we feel like it, maybe days later.
This fits our lifestyle OK and in my case I don't think £6 ish a month is bad. Yes, it's only an 11 hour recording time but over the month I probably download around 100 hours worth of UK programmes.I set it up for emmerdale and the BBC 6 o'clock news for the next week and then fill in with the other programmes we want, download them, delete the link and re-use that recording time. Even when we travel I log onto my Filmon account and download to my tablet if it's something we want to watch then rather than wait till we get back home and then download them. My good lady watched emmerdale when we were in Hawaii last year this way! You know what they're like with their soaps!!:lol:
As i said, each to their own. I've found a way that suits us, others do it differently but with same result, we get to watch UK TV.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Gave up soaps when Ena Sharples went! It always amazes me what is available for free.It's a French site too. Google lists some downloader options for it.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Download the 'Kastor All Video Downloader' for free. I put most of my stuff on a USB and then watch things when there is only rubbish on the TV. Kastor seems to download from most sites ( DailyMotion, Vimeo, Google video, YouTube, Yahoo video, Megavidéos, amongst others ), output format pretty well what ever you want.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I currently use bigasoft Video Downloader which also seems to download from most sites.
i'll get Kastor and try it as well.I only tend to download from youtube and it works well for that. Thanks for the info though. Have a good weekend.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

If you have a decent internet connection(rare here I know!) buy an android box with kodi installed. Can watch all the TV the world has to offer with no need for vpn.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I use UNOTELLY which gives you a DNS number which will work on a home wifi. For an extra charge you can get a VPN which will give you access with an outside network.

I've used iplayer in China, Singapore and India recently with no difficulty.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Yes, Brisman, I reported on some trials I had with DNS at the end of a recent thread entitled BBC iPlayer but I really should have done that on Auntie Strikes Back!

Yes, Unotelly is fine - but so is SmartDNS.com and they are 27% cheaper on an annual basis. I've used them for more than a month now and no problems.

Anyway, let's hope we can both continue to be under the radar!

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I think you meant smartdnsproxy.com didn't you, Raffin?

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Yes, I did,.sorry!

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Hi All--Try hola unblocker--Free to use and works greeeeeeeeeeeeeeat!--Jimmy;)

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Did you try it here in the Philippines, Jimmy? I tried it a year ago and it didn't work well. I seem to remember streaming wasn't good. Aren't there ads too? I recall that reviews of free unblockers at the time rated Cyber Ghost as superior, but I found that a bit complicated to use and oversubscribed.

Reviews normally recommend VPNs or DNS - but I do accept that many of those reviews live off commissions from paid providers of those services and so wouldn't mention free services.

Also, if you look at search results today you will see many pointing out security concerns with Hola. That worries me.... although I am struggling to understand what they are talking about!
SmartDNSproxy is only $35 a year...but if you can save that or more and it does the job, fine!

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

IIRC the problem with Hola is that it can use your 'puter to stream - i.e like a seeder for torrents.The free version is not a true VPN, it uses others 'puters (say in UK) to act as the bridge to give a UK IP. Hola Better Internet Sells Your Bandwidth, Turning Its VPN into a Botnet The paid version is a true VPN.
I stopped using it over a year ago, partly through the security warnings and partly because it kept stuttering. As I rarely stream due to the time difference , Filmon suits our needs, and torrents for some other programmes.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Yes I understand.I only use one dedicated computor for watching TV,mainly UK channels[BBCIplayer and ITV player] so security is not an issue but to date everything works[Im watching ITV player Emmerdale right now]--i also tried tunnelbear which was OK but I can no longer connect[after I paid $65]--Jimmy

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

I'd be very careful with any "free" VPN. All the adverts and viruses aren't worth the bother and risk just to save a few quid each month. Netflix are going after DNS and VPN services to restrict viewing on a geographical basis and the free ones will probably be the first to fail.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Ive used "Hola" now for 4 weeks and no issues--I am using a dedicated computor to watch tv only---and it really works well,incidently on tvpc.com you can find Filmon under the USA listing and when you click into film on access to BBCIplayer and ITVplayer are available--Jimmy

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Jimmy, thanks for the tip on TVPC, but I don't think Filmon gives free access to the BBC iPlayer site. Just the channels to watch live. Anyway I couldn't find Filmon on TVPC. And even if the BBC iPlayer is there can one download from it? I found out recently that the BBC Downloader can be geoblocked, even if one has a VPN and can view live and watch catch up on the iPlayer.

TVPC does have a lot of UK channels - BBC1 was Ok, but BBC2 was "offline" when I tried. Quite a lot of ads and at one point a porn video popped up unexpectedly and started playing! Better to watch the main UK channels on the BBC iPlayer or Filmon.

But I am interested in the sports channels. It lists Sky Sports, which I will try out soon,

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Hi---Sorry told you wrong,go to tvpc.com and in the USA section click on Filmon ,when you are in click on more channels [about 200] and scroll down and you will see both bbciplayer and itv player but you will need Hola unblocker to access--Good luck--Jimmy

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

couldnt get Hola to work last night to watch Match of the Day on iplayer... :-(

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

What works in other countries on the internet, especially in "first world" countries, sometimes doesn't work here or works poorly. But there are things ordinary users can do here which can be restricted or banned elsewhere.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Downloaded it from Filmon and my son watched it yesterday afternoon. He does like to watch Liverpool live so either streams it from Filmon or goes to the sports bar to watch it!

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Wish we had a sports bar here, although I find my team kicks off at about 3.45 am Phils time and have to stream it. Doubt if anything is open at that time here. But the advantage of that ungodly hour is that hardly anyone is up and using the internet, which makes streaming more viewer friendly. I use this link which is pretty good. Watch Live Football Streaming - DrakulaStream and StreamHunter

Regards

Pete M

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Pete, I'm not a sports fan particularly but no way would I get up at 3.45AM just to watch a footy match! That's why I download them. Just don't visit websites that may give you the result before you watch it! OK Filmon costs me $9.00 a month for 11 hours of recording space, but once i've downloaded a programme then just delete it and reuse the time. I've got it set for tonights MOTD which I'll download in the morning then my son can watch it later.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Well, the Saturday MOTD is repeated late afternoon on Sunday...but anyway if you want to watch live Premier League, Champions League and Europa League matches you can't use Filmon as it doesn't have Sky Sports and BT Sports. If you want live UK broadcasts you need streams from those two channels, and I have not yet found any watchable ones. Maybe Sky Sports on TVPC, as recommended by Jimmy8 on this thread.

However, it could be worthwhile buying a month with them to download and watch later the Euro 2016 finals matches in June. The BBC and ITV are sharing coverage and I am sure there will be many evening matches, which unless one can download could only be watched live in the middle of the night here then. Very tiring, especially if England break their dismal record and progress far in a tournament!

PS Springsteen, thanks for the streaming suggestion. I will try it out soon. I have persisted with Paquetá - The Shoe Company, as I reported elsewhere. They had all the midweek EPL games, with streams from NBC and IMG - the latter is interesting as, according to Google, they have exclusive rights to the PL worldwide on ships and airplanes, as well as rights in the US. Based at Heathrow and the commentators are Brits! Never heard of them! Tried four of the PL matches played last Wednesday and the only stream that didn't work well - it packed up at half-time with no alternative - was for the West Ham v Spurs game. Streams featuring the big beasts, Arsenal, Liverpool, Man U and Man City were fine with many alternatives - which I suppose is what you might expect for a targeted US audience.

Re: Auntie strikes back!
 

Raffin,

Watched the Spurs/Arsenal match last night on the link I posted earlier. It was an earlier kick off (8.45 pm Phils time) and I expected to have poor internet with most of the Philippines population utilizing their free fb etc. But it was excellent surprisingly. I have a couple of additional links just in case but the one I used last night is always the best.

You have confused me with your link. It appears to be a foreign on-line shopping site!

Regards

Pete M