Is UK internet = US internet ?

Ok, so not exactly electronics, but where else can I ask this?
First question,  this one is just a checkup, I know its not like China or Singapore or other places I may not not, but is the internet content filtered in any kind of way?

And second, can you easily access US sites from the UK?  to me, some UK sites seem pretty slow to connect.  but not just connection speed, for like hulu.com or cnn.com/video etc...
can you still use netflix or other web-based services?  would you get blocked due to a foreign isp, or connection too bad?    or easily access or your other us accounts and stuff...
i'm guess it's all fine, but there must be a limit somewhere..   surely there's a netflix UK version, but you may be able to think of other examples where things dont work out...

The 'net is the same, but you will find that your IP address has an influence on what you see. You'll automatically get routed to google.co.uk and amaon.co.uk and so on. The ads you see will usually be British, even from mainstream American newspaper sites. And you can't use services like Hulu, which are not licensed to play content outside the US.

It can be pretty frustrating when you WANT the American version of something.

Pretty much anything that involves free media is blocked - so in order to use Netflix, watch TV shows/live sports feeds on US websites (i.e NBC/ABC/Fox websites), download music from a company etc. you have to be physically present in the US (your location can be determined from your IP address). Similarly, you can only watch TV shows on UK TV channel websites if you are physically in the UK (i.e. BBC catch-up shows, online streaming of sports events etc.).

There is no exact UK Netflix equivalent, although there are websites (LoveFilm is one) that provide similar services. Problem is, the DVD rentals are more expensive than in the US and they don't yet have a site which allows instant viewing too like Netflix does (some sites do let you download shows/films, but you have to pay for each download).

As far as I am aware, the UK doesn't filter the internet in the way that some other countries do and so most of the location-specific websites are those offering media streaming/downloads and also store websites (for example, if you try to go onto the Boots website (UK pharmacy company) from the US, it will automatically redirect you to the US version of the site and not the UK one).

bad to hear... would proxy servers take care of 'some' of those issues , just like there's ways to signup for a gmail account instead of a googlemail account from the UK...

...because netflix is pretty good and cheap, i know you cant get your dvds mailed... but there's still unlimited movie streaming...

Yes, there are things you can do with proxy servers. I tried a couple of freebies, but couldn't get Hulu to work through them (yeah, I got kind of addicted to Hulu before I left). It uses Java or javascript or something.

Then I looked to buy a client-side anonymizer, but they all seem aimed at people who want to hide their porn surfing from mom, which got my back up.

I know there are ways to do it, but I'm awfully lazy.

seems like you've done your homework and its not that easy...

is there such things as filesharing stuff as in here/US ...

I dont think I can live without Hulu, please help!  Just kidding... But its a big loss  :\\\'(

so watching a lot of movies is not that cheap in the UK, no?

...because netflix is pretty good and cheap, i know you cant get your dvds mailed... but there's still unlimited movie streaming...

The Netflix unlimited movie streaming won't work outside the US, I'm afraid - believe me, I tried it when I moved back to the UK last year . It's just something you'll have to live without when you move.

I tried a proxy server once a few months back, but it wouldn't let me do anything much at all - I still got the same 'Sorry, this service isn't available outside of the US' message on the Hulu/TV network websites I tried .

Good news is though, that the UK TV networks have realised what a problem illegal downloading has become and are now showing US TV shows within a few days of them being aired in the US. For example, season 5 of Lost starts on cable/satellite TV here in 2 days and shows like Prison Break, Heroes and Desperate Housewives are only 1 or 2 episodes behind the US (i.e. Heroes airs in the US on Monday night and then BBC3 airs the same episode in the UK on Wednesday night).

As far as I am aware, the UK doesn't filter the internet in the way that some other countries do and so most of the location-specific websites are those offering media streaming/downloads and also store websites (for example, if you try to go onto the Boots website (UK pharmacy company) from the US, it will automatically redirect you to the US version of the site and not the UK one).

There are some site you cannot get to from the UK because they are blocked by court order. � This is because the libel laws are different here in the US. � The only time I've encountered it was when I was trying to read one of those "Splenda will make you grow 3 heads" sites, and the makers had successfully had a court order it filtered. � It redirected to a site by the manufacturers of Splenda, when US internet surfers would be able to read the site.

But usually, it's to do with media licencing as has been mentioned.

You can't view South Park episodes from their website while you're in the UK. I keep telling my Dad this, and yet he keeps sending me episodes of South Park to watch. 

I decided to try to find that website, but when I investigated, it looks as if the owners Splenda bought up a lot of the anti-Splenda domains.�  I don't know if there was a lawsuit or not, or if the tougher libel laws have caused internet filtering or not.

ETA: I guess I was right in the first place, at least according to Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_the_United_Kingdom

If a UK user tries to access an article mentioning Sucralose on the Mercola website then the site instead displays a message with the text: 'Attorneys acting on behalf of the manufacturers of sucralose, Tate & Lyle PLC based in London, England, have requested that the information contained on this page not be made available to Internet users in England.']If a UK user tries to access an article mentioning Sucralose on the Mercola website then the site instead displays a message with the text: 'Attorneys acting on behalf of the manufacturers of sucralose, Tate & Lyle PLC based in London, England, have requested that the information contained on this page not be made available to Internet users in England.'

Well, it's all mirrored on different sites from what I can see anyway.

If you get a good proxy server, you'll be able to watch stuff on hulu without a problem.  However, the big thing to worry about is the bandwidth for the proxy server.  First, it needs a pretty good downstream connection to get the material, then it needs a good upstream connection to get it too you without blackouts and pauses (similar to what you'd get if you watched a high quality video on YouTube from a dialup connection).  Part of it will depend on the time of day (i.e. if it's 3 am in the States, you'll have better speed than if it's 7 pm there).  You'll probably have to either build your own proxy or pay for a decent proxy.  I built my own only to have my hopes dashed because the person who is housing the proxy for me had to cut their broadband speed which made the proxy a poor conduit.  Thankfully my backup for US television can cope with that (the proxy is also a DVR).

The 'net is the same, but you will find that your IP address has an influence on what you see. You'll automatically get routed to google.co.uk and amaon.co.uk and so on.

Not strictly true on the amazon one - it will suggest you go to the .co.uk version but you can just go on the US one, I've bought a number of things from there.

But, as stated, some things are controlled by licences, so can't access certain US streaming video here and can't get certain UK stuff in the US.

As for DVD rental - my niece's boyfriend gave me a card with a free 3 month trial of Lovefilm (similar to netflix), apparently members get these gift cards sent from time to time so maybe someone could help you out with that when you are here.

Download hotspot shield (free!), install it. Close your webbrowser, run hotspot, wait until it tells you it's connected, then open your webbrowser again. All websites (including youtube , pandora,...) will now assume you're in the US. You will have an occasional advert and it does slow down your connection a bit, so only use it when needed. It has been a great tool for us here in the UK.

http://www.hotspotshield.com/

I'm glad you piped up, Lisapower. I'd seen this mentioned before here (perhaps by  you) and meant to bookmark it. I'll try it now.

Download hotspot shield (free!), install it. Close your webbrowser, run hotspot, wait until it tells you it's connected, then open your webbrowser again. All websites (including youtube , pandora,...) will now assume you're in the US. You will have an occasional advert and it does slow down your connection a bit, so only use it when needed. It has been a great tool for us here in the UK.

http://www.hotspotshield.com/

Using Hotspot shield, I've only had 2 websites work for me that wouldn't work before  - the US Open website for the tennis coverage last summer and Fancast, which has some episodes of TV shows available via Hulu. I can't get anything to play on the network TV sites, such as ABC or Fox - it says that the media is not available to me because I am not in the US.