Netflix surprised us all at CES by announcing they were simultaneously launching in 190 countries.  The part they didn’t mention was the difference in content libraries between the regions.  Netflix users have been turning to VPNs to watch the streaming service from parts of the world that didn’t have access yet.  They also use VPNs to stream movies and tv shows that wouldn’t otherwise be available in their region.  In a post last week, Netflix vowed to take steps to detect and block VPN services.  This move is in contrast to previous statements and amounts to a game of whack a mole as VPNs will continue to find ways to unblock Netflix.

Is Netflix really getting serious about blocking VPNs or are they just taking steps to placate the content owners who don’t want users sidestepping the geo restrictions?  Your guess is as good as ours.  One thing we know is that millions of Netflix users would be impacted by the change.  That would be a blow to Netflix bottom line at a time when they are riding high and exceeding expectations.  Perhaps the biggest challenge to blocking proxy / VPN services would come in China.  That’s the one market that Netflix isn’t officially in yet.  They have a lot of members that rely on VPNs to stream the service from China.  That’s a large customer base that will essentially go away if Netflix blocks VPNs.  The only other alternative is using a Smart DNS service to access Netflix.

Being an old timer in the personal VPN space, it has been interesting to see the focus turn from privacy to unblocking geo restrictions.  That’s not to say that VPNs aren’t still a great solution for encrypting your connection.  If fact that’s the primary use for a VPN in my opinion.  Yet there are millions of users around the world that turn to proxy, VPN, and Smart DNS to unblock geo restrictions.  Netflix isn’t the first company to try to curtail these services.  Hulu and BBC iPlayer are in the middle of the whack a mole game as well.  Both services are still accessible from a wide range of VPNs so I wouldn’t worry too much about Netflix taking a similar approach.  At the end of the day it’s in Netflix best interest to allow users as much access as possible so just be patient and give the VPNs a few weeks to sort things out and find the best solution moving forward.

Golden Frog has decided to discontinue their secure online storage service to focus more effort on VyprVPN and Cyphr.  In response, VyprVPN (and Giganews users with VPN) will need to move their files to a different solution before December 19th.  That’s the day that Golden Frog plans to sunset the Dump Truck service.  The VyprVPN team has arranged for customers to receive discounts from DigitalSafe and Spider Oak as replacements.

Remember you only have a few weeks to find an alternative to Dump Truck.  Make sure to move all your files off the system before Saturday, December 19th.  Let’s take a look at some other online storage options.

Dump Truck Alternatives

We’ll start with DigitalSafe and SpiderOak since the Golden Frog team has put together special discounts for Dump Truck customers.

• DigitalSafe: Dump Truck users can sign up for DigitalSafe and save 50% off along with an additional 17% off their annual plans.  In addition, users can try the service free for 60 days.  It looks like DigitalSafe is a bit on the pricey side with 25 GB costing $9.50 a month or $95 a year with the discount.
• SpiderOak: Dump Truck users can try SpiderOak for 60 days free as well.  After that the Golden Frog team has worked out a discount of 42% off their monthly plan.  Price wise SpiderOak is a lot more reasonable with 30 GB of storage for $4 a month.

There are a lot of other options in the market now a days.  You can start with the major technology companies which include Google, Microsoft, and Amazon.  You can decide whether or not you trust them with your data.  That’s a personal decision.  Other popular storage providers include Carbonite and SugarSync.

As always you can also choose to backup your files outside the cloud.  Disk storage continues to come down in price.  Just as an example we searched for external hard drives on Amazon and found a WD Passport 1 GB drive with 256-bit AES hardware encryption for under $60.  This may also be an alternative if you don’t want to make a decision on another cloud storage provider before the December 19th deadline.

You can read the Golden Frog post to learn more about the discontinuation of Dump Truck.  They include some information on why they are cutting the service and their plans for the future.  You will also find more details on the DigitalSafe and SpiderOak services.

At the end of last year an estimated 315,000 Australians were signed up to use streaming video on demand (SVOD) services.  That number doesn’t count users that relied in VPN and Smart DNS to access SVOD services in other countries.  Regardless the number of users who are using Australian SVOD services has skyrocketed to over 2 million as Netflix launched on March 31st.  The number is sure to continue growing for years to come.

Netflix is the big reason that so many Australians are turning to SVOD services.  The only problem is that Australian Netflix doesn’t have a good selection compared to the United States.  That’s being kind as the Aussie Netflix only carries 1,500 titles compared to 7,500 titles in the United States.  That means those in the US (and Aussies that use VPN) have access to five times the content they would be able to enjoy in Australia.

While it’s great to see the explosive growth of SVOD in Australia, it will be interesting to see how many Australians continue to rely on technology to get around the geo-restrictions and reduced media library in their region.  Netflix is sure to continue pushing for global licensing rights to content but that isn’t likely to come anytime soon, if ever.  In the meantime Australians and users around the world will continue to rely on technology to bridge the gap and unblock a wide range of channels in other countries.

It will be interesting to watch the continued growth of streaming video on demand (SVOD) services in Australia.  The main players in that region include Netflix, Stan, Presto, and Quickflix.  When you consider the power of using a VPN to access other regions, Netflix is the best SVOD service in Australia.  There are certainly expections depending on what you like the watch.  There are also live sporting events which is an area that SVOD still hasn’t been able to crack in Australia.  Sling TV took the first step in the United States.

Follow us @VPNSP for the latest news.  We also feature deals from some of the best known VPN services.

It’s time for fun in the sun.  Whether you’re traveling around the world or staying at home, a good VPN service can help protect your privacy.  We’re excited to share our top 10 VPN promotions of the summer including specials from IPVanish, OverPlay StrongVPN, Hide My Ass, PIA and more.  Enjoy prices as low as $39 a year.  Some deals require coupon codes and are time sensitive.  We’ll make sure to point out when you need them.

1. IPVanish – Unlimited VPN from just $4.87 a month

The IPVanish summer special includes unlimited VPN access for $58 a year using our coupon code.  The code is pre-filled if you click on the link below so you won’t need it to ensure the discount.  IPVanish has fast VPN servers in 63 countries along with client software and mobile apps.  Sign up for the IPVanish VPNSP promotion using our coupon to enjoy unlimited VPN from just $4.87 a month.

2. OverPlay – Unlimited VPN with SmartDNS from $6.25 a month

If you want the benefit of privacy protection along with the ability to unblock channels in other countries without the speed loss of encryption then OverPlay is a great choice.  During our OverPlay VPNSP promotion you can save 25% off with unlimited VPN and Smart DNS from just $6.25 a month.  You can sign up for Smart DNS without the encrypted VPN access from just $3.12 a month.

3. StrongVPN – Unlimited VPN access from $4.58 a month

StrongVPN is a staple in the personal VPN space.  They have perhaps the best customer support in the industry. StrongVPN limits the number of users on each server.  In doing so they are able to keep the overhead down on their servers.  That gives customers excellent performance and reliability.  You can sign up for the StrongVPN special offer to enjoy unlimited VPN access from $4.58 a month.

4. Hide My Ass – Unlimited VPN from $4.99 a month

Hide My Ass hardly needs any introduction.  They were one of the first personal VPN services to take the market by storm and are now part of AVG Technologies.  During the Hide My Ass Midsummer Nights deal you can enjoy unlimited VPN access from just $4.99 a month.  HMA Pro VPN members have access to servers in 200 countries along with a full line up of client software and mobile apps.

5. Private Internet Access – Unlimited VPN from $3.25 a month

Private Internet Access is a great value any way you look at it.  They have built an excellent reputation and continue to grow their network with 2,800+ servers in 18 countries.  While their prices are already very reasonable, you can save some additional money with our PIA VPNSP discount with unlimited VPN access from just $3.25 a month.  Connect to any server with their VPN client or mobile app.

6. PureVPN – Unlimited VPN from $4.16 a month

The PureVPN summer promotion includes unlimited VPN access from just $49.99 a year. On top of that anyone who signs up for a year of VPN will get a year free.  You will not need a promo code for this deal.  Simply visit the PureVPN summer splash offer page and sign up.  PureVPN manages a network of VPN servers in 101 countries.  They have very nice VPN software and mobile apps.

7. ibVPN – Unlimited VPN and SmartDNS from $4.84 a month

ibVPN is celebrating the summer season with a special promotion on their VPN and ibDNS service. The service is a good choice for privacy protection and for unblocking websites.  if you become a member during the ibVPN summer promo you can enjoy unlimited VPN and SmartDNS access from just $4.84 a month.  The difference between their VPN and ibDNS service is encryption.

8. LiquidVPN – Unlimited VPN from $4.80 a month

LiquidVPN is a newer addition to the VPN industry than some on out list but they are making a name for themselves by offering transparency.  LiquidVPN is kindly offering our visitors 20% off any of their VPN service.  You can sign up through our LiquidVPN VPNSP special page to save 20% off any LiquidVPN plan.  They have multiple plans based on connections with two logins from $4.80 a month.

9. HideIPVPN – Unlimited VPN and SmartDNS from $4.99 a month

HideIPVPN concluded their summer promotion in mid-June.  Even so you might not realize they have a Formula 1 offer active throughout the season.  You can sign up during the HideIPVPN Formula 1 promotion to save 50% off any VPN or Smart DNS plan.  New members can enjoy unlimited VPN along with SmartDNS service for under $5 a month.  The discount applies for the F1 season.

10. SaferVPN – Unlimited VPN access from $5.09 a month

The team at SaferVPN is offering our visitors an exclusive discount on their VPN service.  Protect your privacy and unblock geo-blocked sites by connecting to any of their servers in 22 countries.  You can visit our SaferVPN VPNSP promo page to save 43% off with unlimited VPN access from $5.09 a month.  SaferVPN offers three plans based on the number of concurrent connections you need.

Hide My Ass just announced another major expansion to their VPN network.  This time around the HMA team added 12 servers in 9 new countries to their network.  Hide My Ass VPN now spans 870 servers in 200 countries around the world.  Members have access to a pool of over 118,000 IP addresses.  If you’re not already a member you can enjoy unlimited HMA Pro VPN from just $4.99 a month during their summer promotion.

This is a big year for the HMA team as they continue to expand the network at record pace.  You normally see companies adding one or perhaps a handful of countries at a time.  Nine at once is quite a gain.  Especially considering HMA already had the largest network.  Now they’re well ahead of the competition in terms of network size.  As a member of the service you have access to all 870 servers across 200 countries.

Here’s a look at the 9 new countries HMA just added:

• Bhutan, Cambodia, Cocos Islands, Guam, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Nauru, and North Korea

Take a look at our Hide My Ass review if you’d like to learn more about their VPN service.  Having such a large footprint gives travelers an excellent server selection.  With so many network locations, Hide My Ass is in position to provide VPN access regardless of where you happen to be located at the time. That’s saying a lot for a VPN service.  Members enjoy unlimited access and can switch between servers anytime.

Cheers to the HMA team as they continue efforts to expand their already massive network.  We look forward to seeing where they take the network next.  If you haven’t had a chance to test out HMA this is a great time.  As I mentioned above Hide My Ass is currently offering a good promotion.  You can enjoy unlimited VPN access from just $4.99 a month.  All new members are covered by their 30 day money back guarantee.