ORF is an abbreviation for “Osterreichischer Rundfunk Fernsehen,” meaning “Austrian Broadcasting Corporation Television.” It is an Austrian national public broadcaster that delivers news and entertainment to the country.
In addition to such shows, ORF Live broadcasts many sporting events like FIFA 2022 Qatar, Formula 1, and other international fixtures. But there’s an issue! While these events are available in Austria, anybody outside of the country encounters geo-restriction difficulties while streaming ORF Live – which makes ORF events unavailable.
Keeping this in mind, I’ll show you how to watch ORF live outside of Austria using a VPN service. You will discover how VPN services function, which VPN to use to circumvent ORF live geo-restriction, and some other alternative VPN services in case of a problem…
Analysis: ORF holds the streaming rights of its content for the Austria territory only. As the same content has different broadcasters in other countries, when you try to access ORF live “https://tvthek.orf.at/live” outside Austria, you will be welcomed with a geo-restriction warning. ORF determines your location by analyzing your IP address and prevents you from watching live events.
Solution: You may change your IP address to whatever location you desire by using a VPN service. In our situation, we will choose a trustworthy VPN provider with a server in Austria. This will provide us with encrypted online traffic as well as the possibility to watch ORF live from anywhere in the world.
A quick guide to streaming ORF live outside Austria:
- Visit Surfshark VPN – it offers dedicated servers in Vienna, Austria.
- Click the “Get Surfshark” button to take advantage of the offer.
- Choose a plan that appeals to you and pay using your chosen method.
- Surfshark will provide you with the credentials after the purchase is complete. Log in to the official website of surfshark.com using the same information.
- Go to “Apps and extensions” and download the VPN program that will allow you to stream ORF.
- After the installation is finished, log in to the Surfshark app with the same credentials and choose the “Locations” tab.
- Find “Austria” and connect to one of the available servers.
If you follow the instructions above, Surfshark will connect to the Austria server and provide you with an Austrian IP address. This will allow you to watch ORF Live immediately. As seen below…
Do the steps seem to be confusing? Let me walk you through the process in detail so you understand why we need a VPN service to watch ORF Live outside of Austria.
Stay tuned!
Understanding ORF geo-restriction
ORF TVthek, Austria’s national television, broadcasts globally. However, certain events, particularly sporting events like as F1 and FIFA 2022, as well as live streamings, are only accessible in Austria.
When you try to browse the ORF website outside Austria, you will encounter the geo-restriction warning stating:
- “Nur in Österreichverfügbar” translates as “only available in Austria”.
Even if we attempt, another notice appears.
- The error: “Dieses Video darf aus rechtlichen Gründen nur in Österreich wiedergegeben weden.”
- Translation: “For legal reasons, this video can only be viewed in Austria.”
The warning above also appears if a VPN service is blocked by the ORF system. Under any circumstances, we are stuck!
Let’s take a look at how ORF explains our current situation.
ORF TVthek discusses this issue with the following words on their “FAQ” page.
If we are to translate the issue directly, here is the outcome:
- For some broadcasts or parts of broadcasts, the ORF only has the right to offer them in Austria, but not worldwide on the Internet. Territorial restrictions to Austria (geo protection) only exist if the licensing situation requires this- for example, in the case of certain sports broadcasts – ORF has acquired the streaming rights only for Austria for economic reasons. Therefore, videos with geo-protection can only be accessed with an Austrian IP address.
Now that we have a good understanding of the situation, it is now time to address it with a VPN service.
Watch ORF TVthek outside Austria via VPN
A VPN service’s primary function is to encrypt your online traffic and make it invisible to third parties such as governments, ISPs, and hackers. VPNs do this by encrypting your internet connection as well as issuing you a new IP address.
In other words, if we connect to an Austrian VPN server, our online activities will be encrypted in an Austrian data center. This will also provide us with an Austrian IP address, allowing us to watch ORF from anywhere around the globe.
As ORF states that “geo-restricted contents can only be played with Austrian IP address”, all we need is a VPN server located in Austria. Only that way, we can be in Austria virtually and stream ORF from our current location.
Choosing the right VPN for ORF
ORF is well-known for imposing embargoes on VPN services. The corporation attempts to ban as many VPNs as possible in order to limit its service to Austrian territory. As a result, picking a random VPN with an Austra server that does not support ORF would be illogical.
At this moment, Surfshark stands out as an excellent option for watching ORF outside of Austria. It has a large number of dedicated servers in Vienna, Austria, and the speed performance is pretty good, with an average of 170+ Mbps.
Follow the steps below to make use of this service:
- Visit Surfshark’s official website.
- Hit the “Get Surfshark” button and choose a plan.
- Complete the payment with a preferred method. (Make sure to choose a long-term plan to claim your huge discount)
Once the purchase is a success, Surfshark will send you the login details to your e-mail address.
VPN app installation
If your credentials are ready, now you should install the VPN app on the device you want to stream the ORF from.
- Navigate to the SurfShark website.
- In the top right corner, click the “Login” button.
- Enter user details and then click “Log in”
- Choose your device to install the VPN app.
In order not to have any issues in the future, make sure to grant all permission to the VPN app. It is necessary for a smooth VPN experience.
Connecting to the Austria server
Now your VPN is ready to use! It is time to connect to one of the available Austria servers and start streaming ORF.
To do so, follow the steps below:
- Launch the SurfShark app on your device.
- Go to “Location” in the menu on the left.
- Enter “Austria” in the search bar and connect to the promoted available server.
A successful connection will grant you an Austria IP address right away. You can find your current IP by checking IP analysis tools online. Here is what I get…
Streaming ORF
We are all set! Now we can enjoy the ORF channels and contents to the fullest. Do not miss any sports events especially FIFA 2022, and free Formula 1 races!
- Make sure you are connected to Surfshark’s Austria server.
- Visit https://tvthek.orf.at/
You can either stream the live channels right away or watch the pre-recorded content on demand.
ORF VPNs (3 working alternatives)
So far so good. However, there is always a chance that we might have ORF streaming issues with a VPN service.
ORF is obliged to keep its service available only in Austria territory. To that end, they have started a war against VPN providers and they are always on the watch to block VPN IP addresses.
With this in mind, I’ve put together a list of three alternative VPN providers capable of unblocking ORF from anywhere in the world.
All you have to do is connect to their Austria server and continue streaming ORF from where you left off. Let’s get to know these providers.
CyberGhost
Cyberghost is a Romanian VPN service provider that focuses on both privacy and global streaming services. The corporation has servers all throughout the world, including Austria.
To fulfill the overwhelming demand, Cyberghost has deployed 224 dedicated servers (and growing) to Austria datacenters. Aside from standard VPN servers, the firm also includes specialized streaming servers for Austrian providers like ORF and Servus TV.
Returning to our topic, by connecting to the ORF server using the “For streaming” option, you will be able to stream ORF in the highest possible quality.
In addition to unblocking, I checked the server performance of Cyberghost Austria and received a download speed of 180.88 Mbps. The exceptional speed performance will provide you with the greatest available streaming quality for ORF events.
Last but not least, if you want to unblock global channels and fully enjoy sporting events, Cyberghost is a cost-effective alternative. You may use a single account with up to seven different devices, and it only costs $2.29 per month.
ExpressVPN
In terms of privacy and server coverage, ExpressVPN is one of the market’s leading players. ExpressVPN operates its service using dedicated and virtual servers in over 90 locations. Fortunately, it also had hundreds of servers in Austria.
Aside from server availability, ExpressVPN can easily circumvent the ORF TVthek VPN restrictions. Please keep in mind that the service was previously inoperable, and its IP addresses were repeatedly targeted by ORF.
As of now, there seem to be no issues.
You may enjoy a flawless ORF streaming experience with an average download speed of 170+ Mbps by connecting to one of the accessible Austria servers.
As a disadvantage of this service, ExpressVPN is one of the most costly VPN companies on the market. You can only receive a discount if you sign up for the annual plan. The offer includes three months free in addition to your yearly plan and begins at $6.67 per month.
NordVPN
NordVPN is a Panama-based VPN service provider that prioritizes consumer privacy and security. Even though I wouldn’t call NordVPN a streaming-friendly service, its Austria servers can unblock ORF.
NordVPN currently operates 61 dedicated servers in Vienna, Austria. Each server is prepared to provide you with an Austrian IP address and assist you in streaming ORF from your current location.
However, there are two drawbacks…
To begin with, NordVPN’s server speed performance is nothing near that of its rivals, hovering about 50-60 Mbps. Even so, it is enough to watch your favorite games in the highest possible quality.
Second, NordVPN makes no promises about evading the ORF VPN blockade in the future. Thus, after marking my words, do your math and make your decision.
If you like what you get, you can buy NordVPN’s basic plan for $3.99/month and use it on up to six devices at the same time.
Summing up ORF streaming
Streaming ORF outside Austria is a huge challenge. The company is so strict about copyrights that it is taking all kinds of embargo measures to prevent outsiders from accessing the ORF events.
ORF manages this by blocking non-Austria IP addresses and filtering VPN’s Austria server IPs. Therefore, they are trying all ways to keep their services available to Austria only.
However, there are some VPN providers with dedicated streaming servers. By choosing one of these VPNs, you can simply bypass the ORF embargo no matter where you are located.
Surfshark, for instance, will give you an Austria IP address with its Austria server and help you stream ORF right away. It works seamlessly and you will get the best streaming quality possible.
Moreover, alternative VPN services such as CyberGhost, ExpressVPN, and NordVPN are also some rare VPN providers that can bypass ORF restrictions. It is important to keep alternatives besides us as ORF is always at war with VPNs and in a matter of time, your preferred VPN might stop working with ORF.
So far, we are all good.
Enjoy ORF!
I’m a part-time traveler on a mission: to explore the world and uncover the intricate demands of VPN usage. Fueled by curiosity, I meticulously navigate the realms of privacy, streaming, and unblocking needs in every destination I visit. With a keen eye, I analyze the local and global VPN demands of each country, translating my findings into informative articles about VPN-related topics.
