If you’re trying to watch CTV outside Canada, the streaming service won’t work.
CTV is a Canadian streaming service that only has the rights to broadcast its content in Canada. If you’re trying to watch CTV outside Canada, the streaming service will block your connection.
The good news is there’s an easy way to watch CTV and all of its content outside Canada. All you need to do is trick CTV into thinking you’re accessing it from within Canada.
This article will explain how to watch CTV outside Canada by making the streaming service think you’re accessing it from within Canada.
See also:
- How to watch VisionTV outside Canada: The EASY 2-minute method! (2023)
- Watch Crave outside Canada: It’s EASY and ONLY takes 2-minutes! (2023)
How to watch CTV outside Canada: Quick Steps
To watch CTV outside Canada, you need to change your IP address to a Canadian IP address.
The best way to do that is with a reliable VPN. All you need to do is follow these easy steps:
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Create a new account with ExpressVPN ($6.67/month)
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Download and install the new VPN app
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Select a server in Canada
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Watch CTV outside Canada
Why can’t I watch CTV outside Canada?
Like most streaming services (Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney+, and more), CTV is a geo-restricted streaming service. Geo-restricted means that the service is only available in a particular country or countries, in CTV’s case, Canada.
When you try and watch CTV outside of Canada you will run into errors and won’t be able to access any of the content.
This is happening because CTV has identified that you are connecting to the service from outside of its broadcasting zone and is blocking your connection.
If CTV didn’t do this, it could potentially breach the copyright and licensing agreements that are already in place in the country you’re in. This is against the law and CTV would probably face severe financial punishments if it made itself available outside Canada.
To stop that from happening, CTV blocks anyone outside Canada from accessing its service.
How does CTV block my connection?
It’s all to do with your IP address.
Whenever you go online, you’re allocated a specific IP address. This IP contains information about your location, much like the area code on a landline phone number.
When you connect to CTV, the service scans your IP address to determine where you’re connecting from. If it finds that the IP address isn’t based in Canada, it will block that connection.
That’s why you’re running into errors when trying to watch CTV abroad.
How can I get around CTV’s blocks?
The best way to get around CTV’s blocks is to trick it into thinking you’re trying to stream the service from within Canada. You need to change your IP address to a Canadian IP address.
VPNs like ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month) have a large network of servers worldwide. When you use a VPN, you can choose a server in a specific location, giving you an IP address from that country.
All you need to do is download a VPN like ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month), connect to a Canadian server, and you’ll be able to watch CTV from anywhere in the world.
What is a VPN?
A VPN is a network of servers designed to let users hide – and spoof – their actual IP addresses (internet connections).
VPNs work by encrypting all internet data on a user’s device and rerouting it through the VPN servers. The encrypted data is then sent to an IP address in a location of the user’s choosing, where the data is unencrypted and relayed to a local ISP (internet service provider).
This simple combination of encryption and a global network of IP addresses gives users an anonymous internet connection.
It also has the added benefit of letting users browse the web from a “virtual” location of their choice. For example, a user in Canada could install a VPN on their device and – thanks to military-grade encryption – reroute all of their internet activity via a server and IP address in the US.
Meaning internet users in Canada can use a VPN to access US Netflix, Hulu and HBO Max just like Americans can (with their local internet connections).
Will any VPN work with CTV?
If you want to watch CTV from outside of Canada, you need to use a VPN that monitors its network of IP addresses closely.
Because CTV is technically only available in Canada, using a VPN to watch it in other countries could result in CBC breaching its content and licensing agreements. Often these sorts of breaches can be met with fines.
To prevent these financial repercussions, CBC tries to block VPNs. VPNs that don’t monitor their IP addresses, often stop working with CTV.
The good news is that there is a handful of VPNs that recognise how popular borderless video streaming is, and have built products designed to unblock streaming sites.
The best at this is ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month). They have the fastest servers and always have IP addresses that work with CTV.
The best VPNs for CTV
1. ExpressVPN 🥇
Why You Should Use ExpressVPN? It’s the fastest and MOST reliable VPN of 2023
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
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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 ($6.66/month) is still the best VPN. And importantly, it ALWAYS has servers that are open with major streaming sites such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, etc.
ExpressVPN is usually very good at playing Cat and Mouse with online streaming sites. 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 prevents its IPs from getting blacklisted for “abnormal” usage in the first place.
Check out our full ExpressVPN review.
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2. NordVPN 🥈
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ No logs
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 6-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ No refunds for purchases from iTunes/App store
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
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 it’s 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 a 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 tunneling 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.
Read our NordVPN review.
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3. Private Internet Access
The BEST low-cost VPN for streaming!
Pros
- ✅ Fast and reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Only 48 server locations
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
Number of servers: 25,000+ | Speed: >75% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 70 in 74 countries | Devices supported: 10 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.03/month for 3 years
- $7.50/month for 6 months
- $11.99/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-day 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).
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4. Ivacy
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ Dedicated streaming servers
- ✅ 5-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
Cons
- ❌ Only 5 devices
- ❌ Sometimes runs slow
- ❌ Occasionally block by streaming sites for several days
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for Ivacy and enjoy a 7-day trial with no strings attached
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.
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5. CyberGhost
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ 1-day free trial
- ✅ Reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 7-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
- ❌ Average speed scores
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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
- $2.75/month for 3 years
- $3.69/month for 2 years
- $5.99/month for 1 year
- $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.
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