Saving money on anything these days sounds like an unrealistic dream. The economy is such that everything from groceries to gas has skyrocketed, and the air we breathe seems to cost money. Once we take that concept and apply it to online shopping, it may sound even more impossible. Particularly when it comes to subscriptions of various types, it is every person’s dream to pay that little bit less for the several online services he or she is subscribed to. Sometimes, entire families are subscribed to several services, and this can mount up to be in the hundreds per month.
According to VPNOverview.com, however, there is a legitimate way to save money online. This does not involve bartering or looking for deals, as you might think. It involves using a clever bit of software that not many people may know about. This is a bit of cybersecurity software that is available to everyone, so you will be happy to learn it isn’t exclusive at all. Thanks to the modern democratic and open structure of the internet, as well as the decreased learning curve required to benefit from it, all of us can now use advanced open-source tools as well as cybersecurity software. A particular piece of software required for saving money on online subscriptions is what is known as a Virtual Private Network, or VPN.
Now, let’s dive into how exactly you can start saving money on online subscriptions with literally, a few clicks of your mouse and a few keyboard strokes. Oh, and, do not fret. Using a VPN is completely legal and does not make you a criminal (unless you go and do illegal things with it). Keep in mind that you should not browse the dark web, download illegal material or conduct cybercrime while on a VPN. Law enforcement has ways of finding you if that is the case. Anyway, since that does not apply to you, let’s move on!
What is a VPN?
Source: Medium.com
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is popular anonymization and encryption cyber security software that encapsulates an internet connection. A VPN is like a tunnel through which your internet connection flows, hiding you from the rest of the internet that can normally track your location via your IP address (a unique identifier for your router), and even compromise you. What is more, once you connect to a server outside of your country offered by a premium VPN provider, your IP address will take on an address in that country. While being encrypted and safe from cybercrime and malware, you are also tricking the internet into thinking you are somewhere else. Most people find that this is a requisite these days, as privacy and security concerns have spiked.
What is an Online Subscription?
Source: forbes.com
What exactly is meant by an online subscription in this case? Well, let’s clarify that first before we look at how you can save with a VPN on online subscriptions. An online subscription can be a subscription to the most popular digital streaming platforms in the world like YouTube premium and, especially, Netflix. Digital streaming has taken the world by storm and is a concept that is effectively tuning out regular television in the process. We all want to access our favorite films and events at all times, across any of our devices. This is exactly what digital streaming enables us to do, and more.
Now, premium streaming services like Netflix, for instance, are both considered expensive (Netflix is over $100 a year in some countries) and you may also not get the full content available. For instance, the U.S. version of Netflix has the largest catalog of any other country. It is logical, then, that you want to get the best experience possible if you are going to pay $100+ a year for a digital streaming service. Netflix’s content library differs because every country has the right to apply different broadcasting rights, and is often subject to change per the economic power of a country. In third-world countries, it is difficult for people to pay $100 a year for a streaming service, unlike in the UK, U.S., or Switzerland, for instance.
So, what does this mean for you? Well, it means that even if you find yourself in a higher-income first-world type of country, you can go and chase those third-world prices! How do you do this? Well, first off you need to download a capable VPN such as ExpressVPN, Cyberghost, or NordVPN (either will do this trick). Once you have subscribed to and downloaded the relevant VPN software type for your system, all you have to do is connect to a server located in a lower-income country. From there, you will already be able to see different prices being offered to you (in different currencies that you have to convert).
Once you have your VPN set to a lower-income country, create a new account on Netflix. You will be given a price in the local currency. Now, select your desired package and fill in any payment details. Oftentimes, you will have to use a credit card to do this. Skip any later steps asking you to enter additional phone numbers and information. Once you’ve done this, you can even switch off your VPN and keep that discount forever! However, why remove the privacy and security benefits of a VPN?
Source: opensourcecms.com
One thing to keep in mind here is that you need to clear your cookies every time you flip through VPN servers in your web browser. This will ensure that Netflix or any other streaming service thinks you have logged on for the first time from that country, and as such, you will not draw attention to yourself. Unfortunately, digital streaming services are trying to jam VPN domains for this exact reason, however, with the number of servers out there you can still get around this. Have a go and try an Argentinian server while creating an account and paying for a U.S. Netflix subscription. You may find that you get a substantial discount there thanks to your premium VPN!
