The Easy and Smart Way to Watch Amazon Prime Abroad

Amazon Prime Video is an amazing platform - tons of content, easy to use, very accessible. It’s just too bad that - in certain situations - you might not be able to watch Amazon Prime abroad. Whether you’re on holiday, an expat, or working abroad, not being able to watch your favorite movies and shows is annoying.

Don’t worry, though - in this 6-minute article, we’ll show you how to start watching Amazon Prime abroad hassle-free.

“Wait - Isn’t Amazon Prime Video Available Worldwide?”

Normally, it is. Amazon themselves claim the service works in over 200 countries and territories around the world. However, certain problems can still keep you from having 100% access to all the videos you want.

For one, there’s the “This title isn’t available in your location” issue. Basically, if you watch Amazon Prime Video content in the US, take a trip abroad to the UK, and want to enjoy the same content there too, you won’t be able to do it. Why? Because some videos are only available in the US.

Alternatively, you might have trouble using Amazon Prime abroad in areas where it’s simply not available - like Mainland China, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, or Syria. Whether you live in those places, or are simply traveling there for work or during your holiday, the result is the same - no access to the videos you want to watch.

Why do those issues happen? Because geo-restrictions get between you and the content you want to see.

What Are Geo-Restrictions?

Geo-restrictions are methods content providers use to regulate who gets to access their platforms and who doesn’t. The technology allows or limits user access to a website based on their geographical location - information that can easily be found out from the user’s IP address

Amazon likely relies on geo-blocks because they need to respect copyright and licensing regulations. Essentially, they don’t own all the content they have on display, so they can’t freely choose which countries to make it available in. They might be able to offer some videos in the US and the UK, but might not be allowed to stream them in Canada, for example. Also, Amazon needs to purchase licensing rights to broadcast every single piece of content in every country, which can get expensive for both Amazon and the copyright holders.

As for the countries where Amazon Prime Video simply isn’t available in, it’s usually because they simply don’t have the legal right to stream the content there. In that case, case geo-blocks will be employed to prevent users in those areas from accessing Amazon content. Even if that weren’t the case, the governments in those countries could use firewalls to block access to the platform - like China does with its Great Firewall.

Don’t worry - you won’t need to follow any complicated steps or hard-to-understand tutorials. Basically, to watch Amazon Prime abroad, all you need to do is hide your geo-location on the Internet. And that can be achieved with the help of two services:

2 Simple Ways to Watch Amazon Prime Abroad

1. A Smart DNS Service

A Smart DNS is a service you can use to quickly access Amazon Prime Video content. While it doesn’t hide your IP address, the service can trick Amazon’s platform into believing you’re from an “acceptable” geographical region. How? By masking your ISP-assigned DNS address, which can contain information that leaks your geo-location.

Also, the Smart DNS will intercept your connection requests to Amazon Prime Video’s platform, and will replace any data that reveals your geo-location with new information that points to a whitelisted location - like a place in the US, for instance.

A Smart DNS service uses no encryption, meaning that you can enjoy your original high Internet speeds when you watch the shows and videos you like, since there’s nothing interfering with them. However, you should know that a Smart DNS won’t help you bypass firewalls because it doesn’t hide your real IP address.

2. A VPN Service

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is an online service that lets you easily bypass geo-restrictions by hiding your real IP address. This way, your geo-location is completely hidden, so Amazon Prime Video’s platform won’t be able to tell what geographical region you’re connecting from.

What’s more, if you’re dealing with an annoying firewall in a country that blocks Amazon’s website, a VPN will help you bypass it too.

The only problem that you might have with this service is the fact that it tends to lower your online speeds - but only sometimes. Why? Because the encryption the service uses to protect your Internet privacy, and the physical distance between you and the VPN server affect it. Of course, there are other factors at play too.

Which Option Is Best for Watching Amazon Prime Abroad?

In the end, it really depends on what your preferences are, and what obstacles stand in your way. Simply put:

• If you want to access geo-restricted content and secure your connections too, and don’t mind a potential drop in online speeds, a VPN is a good choice. If you’re dealing with online censorship and firewalls, a VPN will be especially useful.
• If you’re not dealing with firewalls, aren’t worried about your online security, and geo-blocks are the only thing standing in your way, a Smart DNS is a decent choice - especially if you want to make sure you’re only enjoying your original ISP speeds.

Ideally, you should choose a VPN or Smart DNS provider that offers access to both services, so that you can really see which one works best for you.

“Can I Watch Amazon Prime Abroad on Any Device?”

Pretty much - we designed our service in such a way as to ensure it works on the most popular platforms:

• 
  Windows
• 
  macOS
• 
  iOS
• 
  Android
• 
  Android TV
• 
  Apple TV
• 
  Roku
• 
  Amazon Fire TV
• 
  Samsung Smart TV
• 
  XBOX
• 
  PlayStation

Plus, we also allow up to five simultaneous connections, so you can easily watch Amazon Prime Video content anywhere you are in your home or outside of it.

Test-Drive Our Services for Free First

We want you to have the smoothest risk-free experience there is, which is exactly why we offer you the possibility to try out our service free of charge for three days first. No credit card details are needed, and you get access to all the features

What’s more, we also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee once you become a SmartyDNS user in case the service doesn’t work as advertised, so you’ve got nothing to worry about.

What Makes Amazon Prime Video So Popular?

Amazon Prime Video is a service offered by Amazon that offers access tons of great digital movies and TV shows (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Transparent, Homecoming, Bosch) on a subscription basis. The platform is very user-friendly, and the content is available in 4K and HDR.

Besides that, Amazon Prime Video also has dedicated apps that work on multiple devices (gaming consoles, smart TVs, iOS, Android), and the platform is available in 10+ languages.

Conclusion

Even though Amazon Prime Video is available in 200+ countries, you might still end up dealing with geo-restrictions in the following scenarios:

• If you’re trying to access Amazon Prime Video content from a specific country in a country where it’s not available (that’s usually the case with US contente).
• If you’re trying to use the service in places where it’s not available - like Mainland China, North Korea, Iran, Syria, and Cuba.

You might also not be able to watch Amazon Prime abroad if you’re in a country that censors it with government-issued firewalls.

Luckily, all those problems are easily solved if you use a VPN or a Smart DNS. Ideally, you should choose a provider that offers both.

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