Traveling exposes you to new sounds and sights but some days the only thing you want to do is stay in your hotel and watch the latest episode of The Walking Dead. That’s not always easy though since regional regulations and Internet censorship can all prevent you from watching your favorite TV shows. There are however multiple ways to get access to your favorite programs, no matter where in the world you may happen to be traveling.
Get On The Right Digital Soil
Many TV shows are streamed on legitimate sites like Hulu and Netflix, however due to a complex patchwork of international distribution laws, access to them is generally restricted to inside the United States. (They’re usually available in western European countries as well, albeit with new shows often delayed by months.) Using software like Hotspot Shield, you can make it seem to such sites that your computer is in America (or other country you specify) plus enjoy these benefits of traveling with a VPN.
- Download Shows Directly From iTunes – Most non-premium networks typically upload new episodes within 24 hours for $0.99-2.99 each.
- Stream From Sites You Already Have Subscriptions To – Watch movies and TV shows from services like Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and Hulu Plus by getting access to US-based websites using the aforementioned Hotspot Shield.
- Set Your Proxy By Country And Website – The free Firefox plugin FoxyProxy lets you do just that so only specific websites of your choice connect over a regional proxy. Here’s how to use it.
- Watch Music Videos And Official Show Clips By Automatically Unblocking Video Sites – ProxMate (Firefox/Chrome) seamlessly unblocks video that’s behind any regional block on YouTube, MTV, Discovery Channel, Pandora, and others.
The Walking (and Talking!) Dead fans can also use Hotspot Shield to keep up with current episodes within 30 days after they air live on U.S. television directly through AMC’s website.
The Exceptionally Brief Guide To Using BitTorrent
BitTorrent is basically a file downloading technology that distributes a file among all of those sharing it. You download chunks of a given file out of sequence – meaning you get any part of the total file that’s available, rather than having to get each minute of a movie in order, for example. (Uploading files also works this way too – as soon as a file chuck is downloaded, you’re redistributing it to the host of people who’re downloading the same file you are.) There’s more to it than I’ve got room for here but essentially you’ll need to download a BitTorrent client.
uTorrent (Windows/Mac) and Transmission (Mac) are two good, free options. Then head over to a torrent search engine. Although there are several, you likely won’t have to go beyond The Pirate Bay or isoHunt. Search for your TV show, avoid the ad link bait, and open with the BitTorrent client you downloaded. Then, you wait. Torrent download times vary, but if you’re curious, here’s a calculator that can give you an idea how long your show will take, given your bandwidth plus a few other factors.
Obviously you don’t want to break international laws to keep up with Game Of Thrones and remember that various countries have stiff penalties for downloading and distributing media illegally. Take heed of who’s listening to your online communications and protect your privacy against invasive governments before crossing international borders.
A version of this article originally appeared on foXnoMad.com.
