This post was created by WEBSHARE

People around the globe often run into “not available in your region” messages or find certain sites simply blocked – the web is not as “world-wide” as its name implies. Over time, national laws, corporate policies, and licensing restrictions have carved the internet into regional pieces, a phenomenon called the Splinternet.

Many factors drive this fragmentation and the result is a patchwork of localized experiences: Studies found 89% of people have hit a geo-block and 68% of online content providers restrict access by region. A huge portion of online content is thus siloed behind digital borders.

Residential Proxies: Bridging Global Internet Barriers

With so much web content walled off by geography, how can we regain a truly global web? One technical solution is the use of residential proxies. These services route your internet connection through an IP address in another country, letting you browse as if you were physically there. Unlike ordinary proxies, the IPs come from real Internet Service Providers and devices – authentic residential addresses, not data center servers. Essentially, a residential proxy lets you “borrow” a digital home in a different region, granting access to content that would otherwise be off-limits due to your actual location.

For example, a user in Asia can use a proxy with a U.S. IP to stream a video only available in the U.S., or a researcher in Europe can read a news site locked to the Middle East. Major platforms like Google and Facebook, banned in China, become reachable via proxy. Similarly, streaming services that maintain separate national catalogs can be tricked into delivering another country’s library. (Even Netflix offers unique catalogs per country – the U.S. library has roughly 37% of Netflix’s total titles, so a proxy can unlock shows not available in a user’s home region.)

The Business Perspective

The Splinternet isn’t just a consumer problem, but it’s a strategic challenge for companies too. A business that once could reach users worldwide online now faces a maze of local barriers. On one end of the spectrum, media and entertainment providers must heavily localize their offerings: they negotiate content rights country by country and obey local censorship laws, leading to vastly different catalogs across regions (streaming platforms enforce some of the strictest geo-blocks). Social media and communication apps also face intense localization pressures – some are outright banned by certain governments or required to comply with local data mandates.

The rise of the Splinternet forces companies to adapt or risk losing entire markets. Firms expanding internationally have to tailor their products and compliance strategies per country. A stark example is the TikTok saga: as you may remember, the popular app was nearly banned from the U.S. over national security concerns, showing how quickly a policy shift can fragment a user base. Likewise, some businesses have even blocked foreign audiences to avoid legal risk; when the EU’s GDPR privacy law took effect, over 1,000 U.S. news sites blocked European visitors rather than comply.

Companies that venture across these digital divides often invest in localized infrastructure and compliance. Today, more than 130 countries require user data to stay within their borders. In response, global firms are setting up data centers in each region and adjusting data handling to meet local rules.

Still, businesses are finding ways to cope with the Splinternet. Some maintain a core global platform with localized variations for each market (a “glocal” approach), and use internal tools like proxies or VPNs to ensure their services work across regions.

Ultimately, understanding the Splinternet, and using the right tools and strategies, can help keep alive the spirit of a truly global Internet.

This content was produced independently from the Worldcrunch editorial team.