If you try and connect to SonyLiv in the UK, you’ll notice the streaming service won’t work. Don’t panic. There’s a simple way to fix this issue.
SonyLiv isn’t working because it only has the rights to broadcast its content in India. If you’re outside of India, it will block your connection.
To get around this error, you need to fool SonyLiv into thinking you’re trying to watch its service from inside India.
The easiest way to do that is by using a reliable VPN.
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How to watch SonyLiv in the UK: Quick Guide
To trick SonyLiv into thinking you’re accessing the service from inside India, you need an Indian IP address.
The best way to do that is by using a VPN.
Follow these simple steps to get a reliable VPN that will allow you to watch SonyLiv anywhere in the world:
Total Time: 2 minutes
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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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Open your new app and connect to a server in India
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Connect to SonyLiv
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Watch SonyLiv anywhere in the world
Why can’t I watch SonyLiv in the UK?
SonyLiv is an Indian-based streaming service that only has the rights to broadcast its content in India. It doesn’t have international broadcast rights.
Because of this, SonyLiv blocks anyone outside of India from accessing its content. You’ll be able to go on the website. However, none of the content will be available to stream.
The reason SonyLiv blocks customers outside of India is due to copyright and licensing restrictions. If SonyLiv broadcasts its content in countries where it doesn’t have the broadcast rights, it could face severe repercussions.
To prevent that from happening, SonyLiv uses geo-blocking techniques to stop users outside of India from streaming any of its content.
How does SonyLiv block my connection?
SonyLiv blocks your connection by identifying your location when you connect to the service.
The way SonyLiv does this is all to do with your IP address. Whenever you go online, you’re given a unique IP address and this IP contains information that discloses your location. It’s similar to the area code on a landline phone.
When you connect to SonyLiv, it scans your IP address to determine if you’re connecting from inside India or not. If you aren’t, SonyLiv blocks your connection, and you cannot access any of its content.
How do I get around SonyLiv’s blocks?
The easiest way to get around these blocks is to trick SonyLiv into thinking you’re trying to watch the service from inside India.
To do that, you need an Indian IP address and the best way to get one is with a VPN.
VPNs will allow you to select a server in a country of your choosing. Once you connect to this server, you’ll be given an IP address in that location.
To watch SonyLiv in the UK, all you need to do is get a VPN and connect to an Indian server. Now when SonyLiv scans your IP address, it will think you’re in India, and you’ll be able to access the content.
Does SonyLiv block VPNs?
SonyLiv does block VPNs. It cannot block an entire VPN, but it can blacklist and block the IP addresses that VPN provides.
It does this by monitoring for an abnormal amount (more than an average household) of connections coming from the same IP address.
For lesser VPNs and especially free VPNs, this can be an issue.
Because these VPNs are free, more often than not, they have more customers than IP addresses. When this happens, customers are forced to share IPs.
When SonyLiv sees hundreds or thousands of connections coming from the same IP, it knows it’s a VPN, and it blocks it.
Eventually, all of the VPN IP addresses are identified and blocked. Which results in the VPN no longer working with SonyLiv at all.
Does SonyLiv still work with VPNs?
Yes, it does, but you need to use a VPN that is able to stay ahead of SonyLiv’s blocks. We recommend ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month).
Both ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month) have a lot of IP addresses. This means you’ll have less chance of sharing an IP with other customers. They also have measures in place to stay ahead of SonyLiv’s VPN blocking techniques.
When SonyLiv blocks an IP address provided by ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month) these VPNs will close that IP address and open a new one. This means the VPNs will consistently work with SonyLiv, and it also means you’ll be able to watch SonyLiv anywhere in the world reliably.
The best VPNs to stream SonyLiv
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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Is streaming SonyLiv with a VPN legal?
Yes, streaming SonyLiv with a VPN is legal, so long as you’re in a country where using VPN’s is legal.
The good news is there’s only a handful of countries where VPNs are prohibited or heavily restricted. These are China, Russia, Iran, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, North Korea, Iraq, Belarus, Turkmenistan, Egypt, Eritrea, Seychelles, Suriname, Namibia, Slovenia, Nicaragua and Tajikistan. If you aren’t in one of these countries then yes, streaming SonyLiv with a VPN is legal.
However, it is important to know that using a VPN to watch SonyLiv in a country where it isn’t officially available goes against SonyLiv’s terms of use.
When you sign up to SonyLiv you automatically agree to its terms of use. This is a contractual agreement that defines what you’re allowed to do and are not allowed to do with the streaming service. In here it says ” You may view the content available on SonyLIV primarily within the country in which You have registered Your Account and only in geographic locations where SonyLIV offers streaming of content.”
What this means is if SonyLiv figures out you’re accessing it outside the countries where its available, with or without a VPN, then SonyLiv is within its rights to block or ban your account.
With that said, given the wide-spread use of VPNs, plus the many legitimate and legal use cases for VPNs, it’s fair to suggest that banning customers for using a VPN would be an extremely costly policy for SonyLiv to enforce.
In theory, if you’re trying to watch SonyLiv in a location where it isn’t officially available, you risk having your account banned. However, as the best VPNs use military-grade encryption, it’s impossible for SonyLiv to trace where you’re physically accessing its content from.
There’s also one final thing to note on the subject: SonyLiv has never banned anyone for using a VPN to access its service.
For more information you can check out our article answering Is streaming with a VPN legal?
What is SonyLiv?
SonyLiv is an Indian streaming platform that was introduced in 2013.
It carries content from local indian networks such as films, TV series, live sport and original programs. It also has content licensed from third-parties like Lionsgate and ITV along with others.
How much does SonyLiv cost?
SonyLiv has a number of different subscriptions with different costs:
| SonyLIV WWE Network Plan | Rs.299 | 1 year |
| SonyLIV Special Plan | Rs.199 | 1 year |
| SonyLIV Special+ Plan | Rs.399 | 1 year |
| SonyLIV Premium Plan | Rs.299, Rs.699, Rs.999 | Available monthly, quarterly and annually |
