House of Cards turns up on Netflix in Singapore… without the latest season

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Source: Netflix

The popular political drama series, House of Cards, has started streaming to Netflix subscribers in Singapore, after being left out at launch in January.

However, the good news for fans of the series and folks looking for more shows on the video streaming service will be tempered by the lack of the latest season, which started showing in the United States yesterday.

What viewers in Singapore are getting are the first three seasons of the award-winning series starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright. There’s no indication when the fourth season will be available.

Local pay-TV players StarHub and Singtel have deals in place with RTL CBS Asia to show the latest episodes to their viewers, which could explain why Netflix hasn’t brought Season 4 to its subscribers here.

That would make it a disappointing deal for many Netflix followers seeking to cut the cord with traditional pay-TV operators. If Netflix does not show its most popular programmes the same time as the US, then its service here is substantially less attractive.

Since its much-publicised expansion to 190 countries in January, several shows have appeared for Singapore viewers. These include the popular Breaking Bad series. The wuxia movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny starring Michelle Yeoh and Donnie Yen also debuted last week.

For those unhappy with the local Netflix lineup, there’s always the option of using VPN (virtual private networking) services to bypass the geographical restrictions and view programmes meant for the US.

Despite Netflix cracking down on some VPN offerings of late, notably those used by MyRepublic users in Singapore, many others such as Unotelly continue to provide viewers here with an option to watch programmes restricted from them.