CBS All Access was the American media giant’s over-the-top streaming service. Designed to rival the likes of HBO and Hulu , it provided a mix of original shows and third-party content in a similar way to current streaming king Netflix .
Most importantly, in the US it was the home of Star Trek: Discovery and Picard , making it a one-stop shop for the latest and greatest in modern Star Trek series.
CBS All Access has now rebranded to Paramount Plus. Not only does it have all the same content on the former streaming service, but it will also host original exclusives and have first dibs on streaming rights to Paramount theatrical releases over the next few months.
How to watch CBS All Access/Paramount Plus with a VPN
The easiest way to watch Paramount Plus (formerly CBS All Access) in the UK is through the use of a virtual private network (VPN) .
This allows you to use the internet anonymously by changing your IP address, meaning you appear in a different location and your activity cannot be tracked in the same way.
Many paid services, such as NordVPN , allow you to appear in almost any country around the world, whichever is most beneficial to you at that moment. On Nord (any many similar services) it is as simple as signing in and waiting for it to connect to the location of your choosing.
Some VPNs are even free these days, but we’d recommend checking out our list before you commit to one of the services.
Once you’ve chosen your VPN, you still have the issue of payment information. Fortunately, there is the loophole of gift cards. Here’s the steps you need to take:
- Connect to a US server on your chosen VPN
- Purchase an online gift card from an online retailer such as Walmart (you can find other options here ). $25 is the minimum, which will get you nearly four months worth of ad-supported viewing. You may also need to get a US address and phone number to sign up, but you can get hold of those for free online. Note that these are still listed as ‘CBS All Access gift cards’ at the moment
- Go to the Paramount Plus homepage and sign up for an account with an email address, password and any US Zip Code – but don’t enter any payment information on the next page
- Go to the Paramount Plus gift card page and input the pin on your email gift receipt
- Choose the subscription plan you want to sign up for
You should now be able to watch Paramount Plus.
As always when using a VPN to access content abroad, be aware that you’ll be in violation of the terms of use of Paramount Plus, so the company could theoretically cancel your account if it realises you’re using a VPN. Proceed at your own risk.
Author: Hannah Cowton-Barnes, Entertainment Editor, Tech Advisor
As Tech Advisor’s Entertainment Editor, Hannah is the resident expert in all things streaming, film and TV. Before joining Tech Advisor in 2019, she studied Theatre and Performance at the University of Leeds and created a website dedicated to geek culture and lifestyle. She’s also reviewed a whole range of gadgets including flagship smartphones, wearables and styling tools. Outside of Foundry, she’s written freelance pieces for Polygon, Metro and Den of Geek, and is proud to be a Women Techmakers Ambassador for Google.
Recent stories by Hannah Cowton-Barnes:
- Harry Potter TV series has finally revealed a release window
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