HBO (Home Box Office) is one of the largest TV networks you can find. It offers multiple streaming services and has millions of users because of the great content it delivers.
With shows such as Game of Thrones, WestWorld, The Outsider, Chernobyl, Deadwood, The Young Pope, and many others. You can see why fans around the world want a piece of the action.
Trying to watch HBO from any other country aside from the USA will throw up an HBO Now service code error. This tells you that to access HBO; you need to be in the US. Alternatively, one of the US territories where the service is available.
Here, you can find out how to put an end to HBO Go problems and stop the service area message showing on your device.
Why You Get an Error Message
Because the service faces geo-restrictions, HBO checks device IP addresses when any person attempts to sign in to HBO.
Even Americans travelling will face the same issues. There is only one real way to bypass this to prevent these errors. Using a VPN will take the IP address of your device connection, and change it for one on the VPN network.
In this case, it will be a US server, and thus you will get a US IP address.
You even need a VPN to sign up for an HBO free trial. Because, once you click on Get HBO, you receive another error code saying you have no authorization to view the page.
Using a VPN can make it easy to fix HBO errors, yet not every VPN out there can bypass the restrictions in place, and you can still receive the same errors.
You can find easier ways of accessing HBO than using the HBO Now app, or if you are a new subscriber, you may find you are upgraded to the HBO Max service.
Good examples being Amazon Prime Video, they have no time to upgrade, so you can only use the older version for watching HBO content.
New additions such as Doctor Who, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Game of Thrones and more are only available on Max. You can sign up directly, or take another route and sign up for Hulu to get HBO in Australia.
Hulu is a top streaming service that offers a considerable amount of channels and networks, as well as Originals.
HBO Go Not Working
No one who signs up for an HBO subscription without a cable should encounter this issue. It is the streaming service, which comes with cable. It allows the watching of HBO content for cable subscribers when away from home.
It may only occur for a US resident using the HBO Go app outside the USA.
HBO Now Keeps Buffering
If you are watching a movie or a TV show and find, HBO Go can’t play video and keeps buffering; you may have fallen foul of your ISP throttling your connection.
Internet connections can slow, and HBO does need a high-speed connection of 3Mbps or faster. You can check DownDetector, which is an outage map in case there are problems at HBO rather than some other issue.
However, because your ISP can see you are streaming for extended periods, they tend to slow connections as a result.
Turning off devices doesn’t tend to help, and the most reliable way is to use one of the listed VPN’s to hide your online activity.
Best VPNs to Fix HBO Errors
If you face errors while watching HBO or trying to sign up. Here are three of the best VPN’s to bypass restrictions and deliver enough speed for streaming in Australia.
1. ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is highly-regarded for its streaming speeds. It is also number one for bypassing geo-blocks from any country, so accessing HBO NOW or HBO Max doesn’t take much effort.
It hides user data, so ISP’s won’t throttle connections. Connections are robust, and you can even check the outage map most reported to find ExpressVPN doesn’t suffer much downtime.
You can make use of the unlimited bandwidth and all the while being safe with top-notch security and internet censorship using 256-bit encryption, kill switch and IP leak protection.
- 160 server locations – multiple inside the USA
- Network Lock kill switch stops data leaks
- Zero-knowledge DNS
- Split tunnelling to stream HBO through VPN while other data goes through ISP
ExpressVPN has apps on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux, with support on routers and many other devices with 5 simultaneous connections.
2. NordVPN
NordVPN is an excellent choice for HBO NOW/ Max from anywhere. It bypasses geo-restrictions with the numerous US servers and stops throttling from your ISP.
It has many security features like kill switch, 256-bit encryption, and IP leak protection, and will keep your internet connection safe.
- Use up to 6 device connections
- Strong encryption
- Double VPN Feature
- Strict no-logs policy
The NordVPN SmartPlay feature aids in connecting to servers that unblock HBO, and eliminate any error message. With six connections, you can use Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, and many others to connect.
3. Surfshark
Surfshark is the final choice on the list to fix your HBO errors. It offers streaming servers in lots of locations in the US so that connections will be the best quality.
Surfshark VPN supports many platforms and devices like Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, with extensions for Chrome and Firefox. It is unique with unlimited connections, and also unlimited bandwidth.
- Connects to unlimited devices
- IP & DNS leak protection
- Malware and ad-blockers
- Offers AES-256 bit encryption
Surfshark offers enough speed to stream in HD while keeping your location and identity away from any prying eyes. With robust security, including DNS/IP leak protection, kill switch, malware, and ad protection using 256-bit encryption.
Each of these VPN’s comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. It allows you to check all the features they deliver to give you a rich HBO experience.
Because number one is the more reliable and can offer more features and a better experience in many areas, you may find you don’t reach number two on the list to make the most of the HBO free period.