Channels & viewing

[KmPloppy]

Hi, I just received my new Roku Express from Amazon and set it up using my email.

No streaming channels available. Only Netflix and Apple TV. No Amazon, Disney+, etc.

just a heap of useless junk channels of little value. No search function either.

Is that just how this model works? Is there a way to fix it so it will work properly for my region (Australia) or should I send back to Amazon for refund?

I previously had a streaming stick and it worked ok after I used a different email address but I have long since lost the password to it. Not sure how it was set up because someone else made the account for me.

Streaming stick No longer works. Bought Express as a replacement.

Thanks.

[atc98092]

Australia is a supported country for Roku devices. However, that doesn't mean channels that are available in one location (such as the US) is available there. So you had a Roku Streaming Stick, and you replaced it with a Roku Express (model 3960?), correct? And you did not use the same Roku user account on the new device that the Stick was using? That means you don't get the previously installed channels added to the device automatically.

Is there any chance you were using a VPN when you created the new Roku user account on your computer? That would absolutely mess up channel availability on a Roku device, wherever you are located. The account country must match the country the device is being used in for the channels to be available correctly. 

[KmPloppy]

Hi thanks for the reply. There's no chance that I was using a VPN when I created the account, I don't use anything like that.

I cant remember the details of the account I used for the streaming stick because someone else set it up for me.. about 5 years ago or something.. perhaps *they* used a VPN so it would work?

I have a smart TV in the other room, and disney and prime are installed on that as well as Australian specific streaming channels like abc, nine, sbs, etc etc, so I know that Disney and prime are available in Australia.

If I can't get it to work properly it'll have to go back to Amazon.

[atc98092 · Accepted solution]

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@KmPloppy wrote:

I have a smart TV in the other room, and disney and prime are installed on that as well as Australian specific streaming channels like abc, nine, sbs, etc etc, so I know that Disney and prime are available in Australia.

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Unfortunately, that doesn't mean that those channels are available on Roku devices in your country. It isn't Roku that controls that, it's the channel provider that determines if a channel is available in a particular country. And there are many examples of a service being available on other devices but not on a Roku in certain locations. Since I'm not in the same location as you are, I have no idea if that is the issue you're having. But that has usually been the issue with channels not being available.

[KmPloppy]

ok I understand. When I log into my roku account and google the disney channel, the add button is greyed out. So it is likely then that Roku doesn't make those channels available in Australia. My streaming stick was probably set up using an email that was VPNed to a country that did support amazon and disney..

I don't think I will be able to do that, so back to Amazon it goes.

Thanks for your help.

[renojim]

@KmPloppy, it's not the email address that matters; it's where you were when the Roku account was created and a VPN can mask that.  You can always create a new Roku account with a different email address or close the current Roku account and recreate it if you really want to use the current email address (I think).  Either way, you'd have to factory reset the Roku device and link it to the new Roku account.

[KmPloppy2]

I ended up resetting everything last night and it started working.

For whatever reason my roku account, created with the *same* email on the *same* internet connection must have been somehow set to a wrong location.

Roku doesn't show the "location" of your account, and considering it seems to be so important, they probably should.

Thanks for all the help.

*edit* it seems that waaay down the bottom of the channel select screen it shows your account region... if only I'd known that a few hours ago I could have probably changed it. Not sure what that does, so I'm not touching it.