Everyone is talking about Game of Thrones at the moment. You can read about Game of Thrones in the newspapers, in online magazines, on Facebook, see pictures on Instagram, listen to people talk about it in the morning shows, notice how more than 100,000,000 people have watched the trailers for GoT season 8 on YouTube, and so much more. But, there is one question that remains unanswered to lots of Game of Thrones fans… Can I watch Game of Thrones on Netflix?
The final season of Game of Thrones premiered on HBO in the USA on April 14th (in the evening). For people in Europe, in Asia, and elsewhere, they had to stay up in the middle of the night on April 15th to watch the first episode just after it was released. Millions of people decided to do so, and as a person living in Central Europe (where it aired at 03.00 in the night), I woke up to fresh reviews of the first episode of season eight at 07.00 in the morning on April 15th.
But, what can you do if you haven’t started with Game of Thrones at all yet? Is there a way to watch Game of Thrones on Netflix? In which Netflix region can I watch the episodes? Can I find Game of Thrones in any Netflix region at all?
Game of Thrones on Netflix?!?!
Do you want to read the long version or the short version? The short answer is:
- Game of Thrones cannot be streamed on Netflix!
But, does that mean that you cannot find Game of Thrones in any Netflix region at all? We have all read about movies and TV shows available in one Netflix region, but unavailable in all other Netflix regions. An example of that is the popular series Star which only can be streamed on Canadian Netflix.
That is a brilliant question, and it is worth doing some research on this. But, to understand why Game of Thrones cannot be streamed on Netflix, we need to understand the basics.
Why Game of Thrones cannot be streamed on Netflix
So, why can’t I watch Game of Thrones on Netflix?
- Game of Thrones is an HBO production. HBO is a big competitor to Netflix, meaning that they will not share their productions with their greatest competitor. If they sold away the rights to broadcast the show, it means that HBO will actually become unnecessary, and thus they are digging their own grave.
- Game of Thrones isn’t for sale. This is just saying the same thing in other words. Game of Thrones is made for HBO, and it is broadcasted by HBO (or some of their partners) in other nations of the world. If you want to watch Game of Thrones in India, you can use the Hotstar service. In the UK, Game of Thrones is aired by Sky Atlantic (a Sky product), while it is broadcasted by HBO Nordic (a service similar to HBO Now) in the Scandinavian countries.
So, while HBO might purchase the rights to broadcast shows from other streaming providers across the world, they do not sell the rights to broadcast their very own shows to Netflix. I guess this is a principle.
But, I was very surprised as I noticed that HBO is broadcasting the popular Hulu show The Handmaid’s Tale in Europe. But, I guess it has to do with the fact that Hulu cannot be found in Europe, and thus they are looking for the highest paying and best-streaming partners in Europe. But, considering how HBO has partners and offices all across the world, they are in no need of help from Netflix, and thus they can manage it all on their own.
Netflix isn’t the solution to everything
You have probably understood by now that Netflix isn’t the solution to everything. And, with the Disney+ streaming service coming up
So once again, you cannot watch Game of Thrones on Netflix. Sorry about that!
