Dear Lifehacker, I just joined up to Stan and intend to watch it on my iPad. I’m going overseas for three weeks to the USA at the end of next month. Can I watch Stan on my iPad while I’m overseas? Thanks, Doti
Dear Doti,
Unlike Netflix, Stan is an Australian streaming service that does not have a global presence. (It is partly owned by Fairfax which also owns Allure Media.) Unfortunately, this means you can’t access it around the globe. Here’s what Stan has to say on its Help page:
Stan is available exclusively to customers who are inside Australian boundaries. If you are abroad, or using a VPN that makes you appear to be outside of the Australian region, then you will not be able to stream content or access the “Manage Account” page.
Trying to access Stan from overseas will result in an ‘Error 3222’ message. You can makes changes to your account from overseas by contacting Stan support team — but you won’t be able to watch movies until you return to Australia.
One possible workaround is to sign up to a virtual private network (VPN) that includes an Australian IP address in its package. This will fool the service into thinking your iPad is located in Australia while you’re in the US. On the downside, these services aren’t free and while it’s not technically illegal, you will be breaking Stan’s terms of service which could result in the termination of your membership.
If you travel overseas regularly, you might be better off ditching Stan and signing up to Netflix. This automatically grants you the complete library of whichever country you’re visiting. So instead of receiving zero content in the US, you’ll get even more content than usual.
Cheers
Lifehacker
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Comments
15 responses to “Ask LH: Can I Access My Stan Account From Overseas?”
What’s the relationship between Allure media (who runs Lifehacker etc) and Stan, again?
Kinda wanna bookmark this article to point to the next time someone wants to claim some kind of bias.
Netflix is better anyway. Content of heaps of different countries instead of just one. I was kind of bummed about Stan getting Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul but it’s on Canadian Netflix.
I’ve been using HideMyAss VPN https://www.hidemyass.com/vpn/r20533/ for a long time to watch Stan overseas.
Fairfax owns Allure Media and 50% of Stan (Nine owns the other half). I’ve added this to the article.
Oh yeah, I’m not concerned about bias. Kind of the opposite. This is a pretty good example of the influence not having an impact on providing good advice.
I have been using Stan since the middle of 2015 and used Express VPN http://bit.ly/Get-ExpressVPN to watch overseas content. All good
Where is the disclaimer?
Is anyone really asking this question? Wtf would you want to watch Stan from overseas?
If you are paying for it, then why not?
You’d get away with using a VPN or Geo service that has Australian servers.
However, if you purchased Stan for the pure reason that you didn’t want to purchase these Geo unblocking / VPN and the legality around them is a bit iffy, what you’re wanting to do with STAN in another country sits in the same boat as AU residents watching US Netflix..
The good thing is that you are not locked in to these services. Just drop out of Stan for the month that you are away and then sign up again when you are back, simples!
If you really want access to a streaming service while travelling just switch over to Netflix for a month or 2. You’ll have access to the US content library by using your Aussie login credentials (I believe). Might be easier than stuffing around with a VPN on your iPad.
On the content side I’ve got both Netflix and Stan. Stan has great content but its worth giving Netflix a try for their exclusive content (Shows like House of Cards and Narcos).
yes any 5 year old knows overseas restirctions and cant access jack all when OS…plus your in usa dude like aus gets everything 5 months after it airs in the states why would you bother with that australian garbage you call paytv ..also some idiot tell me why this so great country has only 1 pay tv provider and fetch is just a ripoff?? are we that sad yes we are aussie scum$ oi oi oi
Would anyone be able to recommend a VPN service whose IP ranges are currently known to still work with Stan catalog overseas?
I know for a fact Netflix doesn’t allow you access to the entire library where ever you are.
Read what I wrote again.