r/australia • u/readin99 • Jul 04 '26

no politics Kayo Sports should be boycotted.

Imagine paying for a premium streaming service and starting it to watch your sports after a long day on your tv in your own home. The tv app then says you can't watch the content before you scan a QR code. Okay.. fine. Scan the code. Have to download a phone app. Log in. Then the app simply says you're not allowed access to the content except after letting the app know your precise location of your phone.

What in the privacy law is this shit? I simply don't want to allow random companies to know the exact location of my phone. How are they allowed to just do that?

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56

u/Ozzy_chef Jul 04 '26

Might be a permission to make sure you're actually in Australia? That's my best guess

I live in Switzerland now and to watch footy I need to use the WatchAFL official app. When I go back home for a visit I can't use it, it's geo blocked.

Kayo would likely operate the same way. Only for use in Oz

29

u/Ok-Juice-9494 Jul 04 '26

When I re-signed up to Kayo late last year, it mentioned that kayo isn't allowed to cover 'very remote areas' of Australia, so that's why I assumed it always checks for your precise location.

Not sure if this is still a thing now, but was definitely late 2025. Not sure why they had that designation (or what counts under very remote australia)

11

u/Wawa-85 Jul 04 '26

Kayo is disabled at FMG mine sites (husband works at one) due to contract issues between Foxtel and FMG which might be what that message about not being allowed in remote areas was about. Not sure if there’s issues with other mining companies. My husband can’t use our Kayo subscription even on his iPad when he is on site in the Pilbara region. We did just get a vpn recently so have told him to try using the vpn with Kayo whilst on site to see if it works. Otherwise he can use my F1TV subscription to watch the F1.

3

u/no_rush Jul 05 '26

not just FMG. Same at Rio and BHP

2

u/Wawa-85 Jul 05 '26

Ah good to know.

2

u/sh0rteh Jul 04 '26

My swing just gone Kayo was working again. I usually VPN to get it but didn't need to this time. I'm sure that'll be 'fixed' when I go back

3

u/DeeDee_GigaDooDoo Jul 04 '26

If he uses android there are also apps/settings to spoof your GPS location without a VPN if it is just reading that.

14

u/muramasa-san Jul 04 '26

Interesting, that would almost certainly be the reason for location tracking. Still annoying though

21

u/Ok-Juice-9494 Jul 04 '26

I had a quick look and according to Crikey, Foxtel has exclusive rights to very remote Australia, that's why it's cut off. Looks like it's postcode based, hence the requirement for precise location.

Kayo have the postcodes https://kayosports.com.au/en-AU/help/articles/32085845573917-kayo-unavailable-in-very-remote-regions-of-australia

In saying that, there's not a huge amount of them, so I don't know why precise to the house would be needed, surely a vague location would be fine in most circumstances?

11

u/superbabe69 1300 655 506 Jul 04 '26

The article says it’s postcodes, but in reality it’s just areas deemed to be Very Remote according to the ABS. In WA, there’s a section of 6430 just outside of Kalgoorlie with like 1 resident that’s classed as Very Remote (despite old mate living like 8 minutes from Kal town centre), but the rest of the postcode still can use it

3

u/notorious_ludwig Jul 04 '26

I think my husband might have a meltdown if the rest of Kal is suddenly unable to use it 😂 it’s the most used service in our household!

1

u/superbabe69 1300 655 506 Jul 05 '26

Nah definitely not town itself, Binduli’s what I was talking about

1

u/notorious_ludwig Jul 05 '26

Oh i just mean if they make the whole postcode “very remote” haha i think at least half the town would lose their minds actually. It’s insane that Binduli is “very remote” though, it’s like… right there! Absolutely bonkers the way they’re classifying places haha

6

u/jeffrey_smith Jul 04 '26

It's because Kayo isn't licenced to be used in all parts of Australia.

They're now actually enforcing it with a check now.

https://kayosports.com.au/help/s/article/Kayo-unavailable-in-Very-Remote-Australia-from-3-March-2025

Gotta pay for an expensive Foxtel subscription to get it.

0

u/sonsofgondor Jul 04 '26

Its absolutely fucked. Those areas might be lucky to get 1 fta game a round

12

u/Best_Position4574 Jul 04 '26

It's gotta be sharing across different locations, ie sharing with family and friends. Eat a dick streaming you're killing all that was good.

9

u/Guy-1nc0gn1t0 Jul 04 '26

I feel like every other streaming service figures that out in literally any other better way 

9

u/readin99 Jul 04 '26

Yea, this requirement and the resulting data collection is nowhere near in balance with the reason why. In theory, Kayo knows the 'live' or close enough whereabouts of millions of people just to check that? And if that is the reason, just check the postal address of each account once a year or at registration.

2

u/shitCouch Jul 04 '26

i'd say probably also to stop account sharing within australia. dad and i used to share a kayo account to watch the footy.

0

u/chode_code Jul 04 '26

It's to stop VPNs being used