More and more people are seeking out streaming services to satisfy their music listening needs. In an ideal world, anyone would be able to access these services wherever they were located. But, unfortunately, there can be geographical restrictions because of international licensing laws.
If you want to use a streaming service that’s only available to users in certain regions of the world, or if you prefer to download your music from torrenting sites and want your activities to remain hidden, you need to choose the right VPN for your needs.
Music streaming has become standard practice around the world but sadly not all of the big names like Pandora, Spotify, Google Play, Amazon Music and Apple Music are accessible from all countries.
Google Play Music is new on the scene but offers access to 30 million songs. This cloud-based music storage solution is only available in selected countries.
Spotify is probably the most popular streaming service and another one that has strict regional restrictions. A VPN for Spotify will bypass any of these restrictions.
Amazon Prime Music is the online retail giant’s answer to Spotify and gives users access to a million songs on iOS and Android through the Amazon MP3 app. Like Google Play Music, it also can play local files, store files in the cloud, and allows offline listening, but it’s restricted to the US and the UK.
Pandora is a little different to Google Play and Spotify. This service focuses on usability and internet radio. A VPN for Pandora will be needed as this streaming brand is only available in United States, Australia, and New Zealand.
Many other users take to torrent sites to get their music fix. Aside from support for torrenting, another consideration is the level of anonymity you can expect from your chosen VPN. Always check what the provider’s logging policy is if you want to ensure that your activities are not being recorded for posterity. It’s worth noting that recent US law compels VPN providers based in that country to log all VPN activity.
When you’ve settled on a VPN you can enjoy encrypted internet browsing, your IP address is masked, and you can gain access to restricted content by selecting an IP from another country (one that allows access). So consider logging, protocol, and encryption requirements before you commit to a VPN service.