Nearly 65m people watch the BBC iPlayer abroad via proxy servers of VPNs

"Over 60 million people around the world are bypassing online restrictions to use the BBC’s iPlayer service, according to figures from research company GlobalWebIndex. It claims nearly 65 million people from abroad watch the UK licence-fee funded iPlayer service using proxy servers or virtual private networks (VPNs). In China alone it estimates that there are 38.5 million people using it.
Based on what the corporation previously charged for  global iPlayer, which closed last month,  the BBC could be missing out on many millions in potential income if it were collectable.
GlobalWebIndex carried out research interviews with more than 47,000 people from around the globe. This included people in countries such as China, India, Japan, the US, Brazil, Germany and France. Its report about the BBC iPlayer said: “Although the iPlayer is funded by the UK license fee and is therefore geo-restricted to be viewable only by people resident in the country, GWI’s data shows that the service has a huge global audience – with many turning to VPNs or proxy servers in order to access the service from abroad.”"
Source:  Advanced Television, 22nd July 2015