If you’re a web user outside the USA you may well have been in the following situation. You find a site that has an embedded video clip. “Watch this clip – it’s brilliant!” says the page author, so you click ‘Play’ and instead of a video you’re greeted by a message that says something like “Sorry, this content isn’t available in your country”.

It’s a frustrating experience. The content you want to watch is online and right in front of you. The only thing stopping you watching it is an artificial block on IP numbers from your country. You can see why it gets people angry and you can see why tech bloggers have ended up calling this region-blocking of web content ‘Georetarding’ (or sometimes ‘Geotarding‘).

I’ve certainly felt frustrated when I’ve tried to view something and I’ve been blocked because of where I live. The thing is, while using sentences like “Hulu’s content is all georetarded” might be mildly cathartic for bloggers, it’s a flawed accusation.

Calling sites like Hulu ‘Georetarded’ implies that they are just holding out on an international launch and that they could just flip a switch right now and everyone would be happy. The fact is that TV rights licensing is far more complex than most people realise. It’s not just a case of saying to TV networks “Can we show your programmes online and we’ll give you some money?”.

Having worked on several TV programmes myself I know just how complicated it is having to get clearance for every piece of music in the programme and every archive clip from another show or a film. Sometimes rights to this music and footage is controlled by different people in different countries. The issue of who you pay when a programme’s being shown globally online must be a nightmare.

Then there’s actors. Actors get paid ‘repeat fees’ every time a show they’re in is reshown. This can make reshowing old programmes a deceptively expensive business.

Then there’s the networks in individual countries who have paid for exclusive rights to show a programme in their territory. Deals have to be struck with each of those networks. While I’m sure that online streaming of programmes is factored into new TV licensing agreements these days, there is undoubtedly a maze of problems that must be negotiated before programmes can be shown globally.

If Hulu, or any other ‘georetarded’ service, flipped a switch right now to allow global access to their content a lot of viewers would be ecstatic. They just can’t do that though unless they have a deathwish – the lawsuits would be flying in within minutes.

So, bloggers! Stop moaning about things you can’t have yet and realise that there are people working behind the scenes to make the ‘access it all, anywhere’ online media utopia a reality. The first steps to that reality are getting closer. Hulu is rumoured to be launching in the UK later this year so other countries can’t be far behind.

Besides, if you are going to moan can’t you pick a less ugly word than ‘Georetarded’?