As Expected, None Of It Works (Internationally)

I’m not sure why I hadn’t previously tested this but, while traveling Internationally over the long Thanksgiving weekend, I confirmed what we probably all knew — most US-based content is inaccessible from abroad. Hulu Plus, Netflix, Pandora, and Slacker threw regional restriction error messages from their respective iPhone apps. Additionally, an iTunes movie rental download I started in the US and completed in Europe vanished from my device entirely.

However, on the audio front, two services helped get me through the trip: Slacker’s cached stations, which I’d loaded up on prior to travel, and surprisingly XM Sirius streamed just fine. In terms of video, while I don’t speak the language, the German equivalent of Home Shopping Network or QVC proved to be far more entertaining than anticipated.

Published by
Dave Zatz