Cookies are small files used by Hayu to make your online experience faster and more streamlined.
They aren’t dangerous files however they can cause issues when using a VPN.
In order to make your online experience better, some Cookies contain information about your physical location. Hayu can potentially access this information to determine your location regardless of if you’re using a VPN or not.
If you’re trying to watch Hayu in a country where it isn’t available, Hayu will be able to figure out you’re not in the the right country by accessing your Cookies. It will then block your VPN connection.
To fix this, delete your Cookies.
Change to a different server
Your VPN isn’t working with Hayu because it has managed to block the IP address that your VPN has given you.
The good news is this doesn’t necessarily mean it has blocked all of the IP addresses your VPN can provide.
If you change your VPN server, you’ll be given a new IP address and if this one hasn’t been blocked by Hayu your VPN will work again.
Upgrade to a better vpn
If changing to a different server and deleting your Cookies didn’t fix the problem, then Hayu has managed to block all of your VPNs IP addresses.
This has happened because your VPN can no longer get around Hayu’s VPN blocking techniques.
The best way to fix Hayu not working with VPN is to upgrade to a VPN that has effective measures in place to stay ahead of these VPN blocks.
I recommend using a high-end streaming VPN such as ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) as it has the best setup for unblocking major streaming services like Hayu.
ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) has numerous servers and IP addresses for you to use, and it plays a game of Cat and Mouse with major streaming services, where it replaces any blacklisted IP addresses with fresh, undetected IPs – therefore allowing users to stay one step ahead of streaming sites’ IP blocks
There is also a 30-day money-back guarantee with ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) and it has an excellent support network so that you can be comfortable upgrading to their service.
Why has Hayu stopped working with my VPN?
As you know, if you try and watch Hayu in a country where it isn’t available, you’ll come across the “this content is not available in your location,” error.
VPNs are a good way to get around this error, however if your VPN isn’t working, Hayu has managed to find out that your IP address is a VPN IP address and it has blocked the connection.
Hayu does this because it doesn’t want to breach the broadcast agreements it has with its content partners. If it did, then it could face severe fines.
To prevent these fines from happening, Hayu tries to block VPN connections.
How does Hayu block VPNs?
Hayu blocks VPNs using three main techniques:
The most common technique is to do with the IP addresses that your VPN can provide. VPN providers have more customers than the number of IP addresses they can provide; this means that customers can use the same IP addresses. Usually, only a household with a few devices uses the same IP address. When Hayu sees hundreds or even thousands of connections coming through on the same IP address, it knows that it is a VPN and it blocks it.
Hayu monitors for IP, DNS and WebRTC leaks that can tip the service off you are using a VPN.
Hayu teams up with GeoIP databases like Maxmind to identify IP addresses. If the IP address your VPN provides is on one of these databases, Hayu will be able to find out where in the world you are connecting to the internet from and it will block you.
Lesser VPNs especially free VPNs struggle to get around these blocks. This is what has most likely happened to your VPN.
The good news is there are VPNs out there that do have methods to get around Hayu’s blocks.
Does Hayu still work with VPNs?
Hayu still works with VPNs, however, you need to use a VPN that can stay ahead of Hayu’s VPN blocks.
Number of servers: 3,000+ | Speed: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 160 in 94 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
$6.66/month for 15 months
$9.99/month for 6 months
$12.95/month for 1 month
ExpressVPN is still the best VPN. And importantly, it ALWAYS has servers that are open with major streaming sites such as Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video etc.
ExpressVPN is usually very good at playing Cat and Mouse with online streaming sites (apart from BBC iPlayer). Meaning, whenever one of its servers is blacklisted it creates a new one – giving its users a constant stream of servers that aren’t blocked. Needless to say, this is a valuable attribute if you’re looking for a VPN to unblock streaming sites.
Its app is easy-to-use and free to download on pretty much any device you can think of. Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, FireStick, Android TV, Roku, PS4, Xbox, Linux, even Apple TV (with a workaround). It’s got it all covered.
The app is another main reason this VPN is so good at unblocking TV streaming sites (that claim they block VPNs) is that its software takes a pragmatic approach to user management. While other VPNs tempt customers by promising them access to hundreds/thousands of servers in multiple countries, ExpressVPN does things differently.
With ExpressVPN you only have a handful of server locations to choose from. Once you select your location the app takes care of the rest. Assigning you to the fastest available server that’s not oversubscribed. This simple technique is so important, as it keeps ExpressVPN’s servers operating at lightning-fast speeds and prevent its IPs from getting blacklisted for “abnormal” usage in the first place.
Number of servers: 5,000+ | Speeds: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 62 countries | Devices supported: 6 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
$3.49/month for 2-years
$6.99/month for 1-year
$11.95/month for 1 month
NordVPN is the most widely-used VPN in the world. And its easy to see why. It’s a polished app that delivers fast connections (more on this later) to a massive network of VPN servers. It’s the most reliable at unblocking popular streaming services too – US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. This is because NordVPN hired full-time technical team (that’s responsible for monitoring its servers connections with popular TV streaming services) and has been aggressively investing in its network of IP addresses in key locations. Another interesting thing to note is that NordVPN is an industry leader in its development of Nordlynx technology. Nordlynx is built using the WireGuard, a new VPN tunnelling protocol designed to outperform current standards (OpenVPN and IPSec). The benefits, according to NordVPN, are dramatically faster transfer speeds while connected to a VPN. My tests – New Zealand to London – confirm that Nordlynx is currently the fastest VPN on the market. However, the difference isn’t dramatic, a few Mbps is all.
Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
$1.16/month for 5-years
$3.50/month for 1-year
$9.99/month for 1 month
If you’re looking for an excellent VPN, with an even better price tag, Ivacy ($1.16/month) is a great option. This VPN has all the features you need to stream BBC iPlayer, in HD, from any country in the world. I’ve been testing the app recently on Mac, PC, Android, iOS and FireStick and the results have been impressive – unlocking BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. with ease. The Ivacy app is a little different in regards to its UX (user experience). Instead of just selecting a UK server, you need to select the specific BBC iPlayer server. Don’t worry, this isn’t a bad thing – by connecting to a dedicated BBC iPlayer server, it simply means that you’re connecting to an IP address that Ivacy knows works with BBC iPlayer. For an extra $1.99/month (£1.74) you can add-on a dedicated IP. This will buy you sole access to an IP address in a country of your choice, meaning you won’t have to share your IP (and speeds) with any other use. I don’t recommend this though, using the regular Ivacy servers is enough 95 per cent of the time.
Number of servers: 25,000+ | Speeds: >75% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 70 in 74 countries | Devices supported: 10 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
$2.19/month for 3-years
$3.33/month for 1-year
$11.95/month for 1-month
Private Internet Access is one of the leading no-log VPN services with over 1 million paying customers.
This VPN is one of the best in the industry at beating streaming sites’ VPN bans. It provides reliable connections with US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+ Amazon Prime Video, etc. It also allows 10 simultaneous devices to be connected to its servers at the same time, so you can share the account with your close friends.
If, for whatever reason, you’re not happy with Private Internet Access, there’s a 24/7 live chat support available to assist you with your problem. PIA also offers the industry-standard 30-days money-back guarantee.
From my tests (from New Zealand) I was able to get download speeds of 70 Mbps while connected to a UK server using the Private Internet Access VPN (my non-VPN speed is 100 Mbps).
Number of servers: 6,000+ | Speeds: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 200 in 90 countries | Devices supported: 7 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
$2.75/month for 3 years
$3.69/month for 2 years
$5.99/month for 6 months
$12.99/month for 1 month
CyberGhost is one of the more established VPNs on the market. It has a well-established, and well-tested global network of servers that perform well.
From my tests over the past several months, CyberGhost has no trouble at unblocking major streaming services – US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max etc. This VPN performed well at maintaining download speeds, well above 65 per cent of my regular (non VPN) ISP speed.
That said, there’s nothing really unique about the service. Which forces you to look at its price-point. And there’s nothing special here. Its short-term $12.99/month price tag puts is well above the industry average of $10.10/month. Similarly, its long-term $2.75/month for 3 years deal isn’t much of a “deal” either.
Oddly, CyberGhost’s most unique feature is its a 1-day, no obligations, free trial. This is an appealing offer to customers who are new to VPNs. However, it’s important to remember that most reputable VPNs will offer customers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so try not to be too seduced by the offer.
