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Time Business News
17-07-2025
- Business
- Time Business News
Best Residential Proxy Services of 2025: Ranked for Corporate Reliability and Global Reach
As digital business continues to expand across markets and borders, so does the need for clean, reliable access to data. Whether it's a marketing team testing international ad placements or an enterprise gathering competitive intelligence at scale, residential proxies have become critical to operating efficiently and securely online. In 2025, the right proxy solution must offer more than just access. It needs to be legally sourced, deliver consistent uptime, and support region-specific targeting—all while adapting to automation demands and evolving compliance frameworks like GDPR and CCPA. To help businesses select the right partner, we've assessed the top residential proxy providers based on real-world performance and legal transparency. Residential proxies route your web traffic through IP addresses tied to actual devices on real household networks—issued by Internet Service Providers (ISPs). This makes your activity appear indistinguishable from that of a genuine user, allowing for cleaner, uninterrupted access to geo-specific or restricted data sources. In contrast to datacenter proxies, which are easily flagged and blocked due to their artificial origin, residential IPs offer stealth and legitimacy. For businesses conducting regionally sensitive work—like local SEO tracking, competitor research, or ad verification—this distinction is critical. Common business use cases in 2025 include: Monitoring product availability and pricing across global eCommerce sites Verifying digital ads and user experience in specific countries or cities Conducting compliance or brand protection audits Testing UX or web content as seen by users in different regions In short, residential proxies aren't just about access—they're about trust, accuracy, and sustainability in data operations. To identify the best proxy services for business use in 2025, we focused on five core areas: Sourcing Method: IPs obtained via direct ISP agreements were favored for their stability, transparency, and lower risk profile. IPs obtained via direct ISP agreements were favored for their stability, transparency, and lower risk profile. Performance Under Load: Providers were tested across repeated, high-volume scenarios—where speed, connection success rate, and uptime mattered most. Providers were tested across repeated, high-volume scenarios—where speed, connection success rate, and uptime mattered most. Control Options: The ability to manage session behavior—such as rotating IPs for scraping or sticky IPs for login consistency—was essential. The ability to manage session behavior—such as rotating IPs for scraping or sticky IPs for login consistency—was essential. Geo-Targeting Depth: Providers offering city-level or ASN-based targeting were ranked higher than those with just country-level coverage. Providers offering city-level or ASN-based targeting were ranked higher than those with just country-level coverage. Business Readiness: Clear documentation, onboarding support, enterprise pricing tiers, and legal compliance were necessary to meet corporate standards. With business users demanding more from proxy services—more compliance, more control, and more accuracy—only a few providers meet the mark in 2025. Here's our curated list of the top performers, beginning with NetNut, which stands out for its enterprise-focused infrastructure and legal sourcing. NetNut residential proxies takes the top position thanks to its robust, legally sourced proxy network. By partnering directly with ISPs, NetNut offers residential IPs that don't rely on peer-to-peer lending—eliminating many of the risks associated with unreliable or user-contributed IPs. The service excels at managing high-traffic operations, delivering low failure rates during scraping, testing, or login-heavy sessions. With full API access, sticky and rotating IP modes, and support for city-level targeting, it's designed for businesses that need predictable performance across borders. Key Features: 52+ million residential IPs sourced via ISP agreements Real-time rotation and session IP options City, country, and ASN-level geo-targeting Fast integration with browser and automation tools Dedicated support and onboarding for corporate clients Ideal Use Case: High-volume data teams, multi-regional ad verification, global UX testing. Bright Data (formerly Luminati) is known for its vast IP network and powerful customization tools. With more than 72 million IPs, it offers granular control over traffic routing, including filtering by device type, connection quality, and mobile carrier—making it ideal for complex global testing environments. The platform is enterprise-ready but comes with a steeper learning curve. It suits teams with internal technical support and a need for detailed reporting and targeting precision. Key Features: 72+ million IPs in 195+ countries Advanced filters for carrier, ASN, and connection type GDPR and CCPA-compliant infrastructure Built-in analytics and traffic visualization Ideal Use Case: Multinational research firms, data compliance audits, telecom and ad-tech testing. Oxylabs provides one of the largest and fastest residential proxy networks, built for volume-heavy use cases. With over 100 million IPs and high-performance APIs, it enables rapid web scraping, product data aggregation, and competitor intelligence across thousands of domains. The service is transparent about its peer-sourced IPs and offers enterprise-level documentation, onboarding, and usage dashboards. Key Features: 100M+ IPs, optimized for scraping velocity API integrations with Python, JavaScript, and more IP whitelisting and session persistence options 24/7 customer success teams for enterprise clients Ideal Use Case: High-frequency scraping, eCommerce price intelligence, global brand tracking. Smartproxy is built for agility, offering quality IPs, clean UI, and pricing flexibility that fits startups, agencies, and fast-moving tech teams. It provides 40 million+ residential IPs and allows users to toggle between sticky and rotating IPs within minutes. Smartproxy supports all the essentials—session control, location targeting, tool compatibility—and has established itself as a dependable choice for SMBs aiming to grow efficiently. Key Features: 40M+ IPs with U.S. and global coverage Easy onboarding with low-code setup Browser extension, API, and third-party tool support Affordable pricing with monthly and usage-based tiers Ideal Use Case: Growth-stage businesses, SEO agencies, digital marketers running global campaigns. SOAX may not boast the largest IP count, but it leads in precision and cleanliness. Its IPs are constantly refreshed and vetted, and its dashboard gives users control over targeting cities, ISPs, and session durations. It's an excellent solution for companies that run localized audits, test marketing campaigns by region, or need project-based proxy access without long-term commitment. Key Features: 8.5M+ curated, high-quality IPs Real-time location targeting Intuitive UI with adjustable session options Pay-as-you-go billing model for flexibility Ideal Use Case: Market entry research, geo-restricted content testing, ad compliance verification. Are residential proxies compliant with business privacy regulations? Yes, when sourced legally. Providers like NetNut and Bright Data work with ISPs or verified contributors to ensure their IPs are ethically obtained and compliant with laws such as GDPR and CCPA. Always confirm sourcing methods before choosing a proxy vendor. Do proxies affect connection speed or web performance? Performance depends on the provider's network quality and infrastructure. Top services like NetNut and Oxylabs are optimized for enterprise-grade throughput, delivering low latency and high success rates even under load. Are residential proxies suitable for smaller businesses or teams? Absolutely. While some platforms cater to large enterprises, options like Smartproxy and SOAX offer accessible pricing and user-friendly tools that make proxy use viable for startups, agencies, or solo operators. TIME BUSINESS NEWS
Mint
23-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Warner Bros Discovery restructuring may back India OTT plans—but faces challenges
Warner Bros Discovery's decision to split its streaming and studio business from its traditional TV networks may give a fresh push to its digital plans in India—but growing in the country's crowded and price-sensitive OTT market won't be easy. Under the restructuring, Global Networks will house entertainment, sports and news television brands such as CNN and Discovery, along with digital products including the discovery+ streaming platform. The newly formed Streaming & Studios entity will comprise Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group and DC Studios, which will continue releasing their films theatrically in India. David Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros Discovery, said in a global release, 'By operating as two distinct and optimised companies, we are empowering these brands with the sharper focus and strategic flexibility they need to compete most effectively in today's evolving media landscape." Also read: Why Warner boss Zaslav is having to split up the media empire he built 'This separation will invigorate each company by enabling them to leverage their strengths and specific financial profiles. This will also allow each company to pursue important investment opportunities and drive shareholder value," added CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels. India playbook challenges The separation could allow Warner Bros Discovery to invest more aggressively in OTT in India, especially in subscription-based models. However, the challenges are plenty. Currently, the company only runs the discovery+ streaming service in India, while syndicating most of its intellectual property (IP) to JioHotstar. Experts believe that the platform, now free from having to serve traditional TV audiences, could lean into bold, edgy content aimed at younger demographics. 'The digital business isn't big in India, and it will have to show revenue now," said Girish Dwibhashyam, streaming industry expert and former vice-president and chief operating officer of DocuBay, a documentary streaming service. 'The split could rejuvenate their investments in OTT but it would also bring down their negotiating power with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and aggregators for distribution partnerships since it would no longer come under the same umbrella as broadcast," he added. While Warner Bros Discovery has dabbled in infotainment, science, and mythology in India, Dwibhashyam sees room for more daring content experiments. Given that they no longer have the baggage of producing the same programming for both TV and OTT, the company could explore edgier themes, he said. Also read: Online games and self-publishing platforms: movie producers tap new avenues for fresh plotlines Vinay V. Singh, managing director (USA), Primus Partners, added that the company could now double down on high-quality originals and global formats. 'These are key to capturing Indian millennials and Gen Z in a fiercely competitive OTT landscape," he said. Singh also said HBO-branded content, currently available via video-on-demand through partnerships like JioHotstar, may gain more muscle with renewed global backing. Despite the digital optimism, linear television remains dominant in India, especially in smaller towns and non-English-speaking markets. However, if other global media giants follow Warner Bros Discovery's decoupling strategy, standalone TV units may need to raise ad or subscription rates to remain viable. This could further drive viewers toward cheaper OTT platforms, including those that rely on advertising-based video-on-demand (AVoD). Industry experts anticipate that the decoupling trend could push streaming companies to innovate their pricing models. Expect bundles that include local originals, micropayments, ad insertions, and dynamic pricing to boost reach while protecting average revenue per user (ARPU). Subscription blues Yet, streaming monetization remains a hurdle in India. According to a report by Ormax Media, India's video streaming audience stood at 547.3 million, but active paid subscriptions stagnated at 99.6 million. Notably, the SVoD (subscription video-on-demand) audience declined by 2% in 2024, even as the AVoD base grew by 21%. 'Foreign companies haven't really seen India as a hot market. Plus, there isn't real value in SVoD yet," said Sunil Lulla, founder, The Linus Adventures. Warner Bros Discovery has also refrained from fully adopting the ad-supported model in India. Last year, Sai Abishek, head of factual and lifestyle cluster, South Asia, had said the platform would continue to focus primarily on a subscription-driven model. What's next While Warner Bros Discovery declined to comment on Mint's queries for this story, industry watchers say the company's strategic split could be a reset moment for its India plans. However, competing in a saturated market—dominated by players like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, ZEE5, and SonyLIV—will demand more than just capital. It will require smart partnerships, platform innovation, and the courage to bet big on differentiated content. Also read: Few winners, many misses in Bollywood's lopsided H1 recovery story
Indian Express
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
France media giants win court ruling to order VPNs to block 200 illegal sports streaming sites
In a major move in the fight against illegal sports streaming, French media giants Canal+ secured a landmark ruling on Friday from the Paris Judicial Court, ordering the ban on over 200 illegal sports streaming websites across several Virtual Private Network (VPN) services. According to Footboom, VPN providers have been handed 'a tight, three-day window to execute the technical finesse needed to block these sites'. The historic ruling by the Paris court covers the 2024-25 season of the Premier League, the UEFA Champions League, France's Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 divisions and the country's Top 14 rugby league. The report further stated that Canal+ and the French Professional Football League (LFP) will keep a watchful tab to report more digital pirate websites to France's anti-piracy vigilance authority, Arcom. VPNs that have been utilised by fans to copy IP addresses and allow access to illegal streams of various sporting tournaments will also fall under scrutiny. The judicial court has therefore demanded NordVPN, Proton, CyberGhost, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN to put a halt on offering cushion to the illegal streams. Welcoming the decision to stub such streams, Canal+ said it 'sends a strong message regarding the responsibility of VPN providers — recognised for the first time as technical intermediaries — in the illegal broadcasting of sports content'. Canal+ added it 'is proud to have initiated this major step forward in the fight against sports piracy in France and beyond, setting a legal precedent'. 'Following previous court orders obtained in 2022 targeting illegal streaming sites via Internet Service Providers, in 2024 via alternative DNS providers, and in 2025 via CDN and proxy services, this new ruling against VPNs is fully aligned with the group's strategy to hold all types of technical intermediaries accountable in the battle against audiovisual piracy,' the statement read. Canal+ also added that the group had obtained the blocking of over 1,300 domain names to combat content piracy in France in 2024 alone.
CNET
10-05-2025
- CNET
Battling Customer Service Chatbots is Getting Worse with AI
Customer service chatbots are notoriously aggravating as they waste time hitting you with questions that trap you in prompt loops, often designed to delay and deflect you from speaking with a human agent. But I dove right into the dark pits of hold-music hell this week, because I moved homes and needed to set up Internet service at a new location. After spending over three hours on the phone, with multiple phone calls to two Internet service providers, I can confidently say that the chatbots are not up to the task of doing what a human representative can accomplish. But those bots are good at one thing: wearing down our sprits. In this episode of Tech Therapy, embedded above, I needed to vent about the odyssey of finding knowledgable humans on a customer service call, and how the tech barriers are increasing. Without speaking to a human, at one point I was asked if Verizon could use my voice data as a security fingerprint for my next call. No, thanks -- I don't need to give up my voice data without knowing what is being done with it, only to have service denied the next time I catch a cold and sound stuffy. In the end, the relief of reaching helpful humans won my business. But, as my co-host Scott Stein points out, sometimes the only way to get to a human is to be nice to the robots blocking your path. I don't see the situation getting any better for customers, as AI is being used in more chatbot agents, which can get answers completely wrong — as the New York Times pointed out in its reporting on problematic AI hallucinations. Will we eventually be dealing with chatbots that sound human, like overly agreeable ChatGPT voices, but will we be able to tell it's AI? Maybe not -- unless the voice glitches out and becomes a demon. But Scott shows off some tech that is going in the right direction with Spacetop. The new AR laptop software creates a 180-degree virtual desktop with floating monitors, using one pair of glasses. Maybe it's a tool for travel. Maybe it's for the workspace of the future. But maybe I'll be using it the next time I need tech help, as I will need multiple monitor windows open to research and troubleshoot the answers to my questions -- all while circumventing the inevitable useless AI support bots. Ready for another session? Catch up on past Tech Therapy podcast episodes and subscribe on our YouTube channel.
NZ Herald
08-05-2025
- NZ Herald
Palmerston North hydroponics retailer takes Reddit to court to take down posts and unmask user identities
While they have their suspicions about who might be behind the posts, they can't prove it because users on the forum aren't required to use their real names. Some of the posts, which are all live on a subpage of the website called r/NZtrees, where users generally share tips on how to grow cannabis, are almost three years old. The case is being heard in the Palmerston North District Court where Cozens and Eales have sought an order for Reddit to take down the posts, to publish a correction, and to give the pair a right of reply in a way the court determines. All these remedies are available to the court under the Harmful Digital Communications Act. Cozens and Eales are also seeking an order that Reddit tell the court who the anonymous posters are, however, such an order can only be made to an Internet Protocol Address Provider (IPAP), also known as an Internet Service Provider. Their application did not identify a specific IPAP that would be subject to the order if it were to be made by the court. At a hearing on the matter held in March, Cozens told the court that Reddit was operating in New Zealand, but had no physical office in the country as far as he was aware. 'If Reddit is doing nothing to allow these posts to continue…then how are we allowing them to operate in NZ?' he asked. 'In the meantime, my business is suffering, and people have lost their jobs.' Judge Stephanie Edwards advised at that hearing that there was an extent to which New Zealand law could apply overseas. 'There are plenty of companies that operate here that aren't based here,' she said. Following the hearing, Judge Edwards ordered that a technical adviser be appointed to assess the feasibility of the orders Cozens and Eales were seeking, and how realistic it would be to enforce those orders. Today, the case returned to court, and lawyers for Reddit submitted that it had proactively removed nine of the posts which they considered had violated its rules. However, they advised that others remained up and Reddit would not be disclosing the identities of its users. Advertisement Advertise with NZME. Judge Edwards offered Cozens the opportunity to withdraw his claim on the basis that Reddit had removed some of the posts, and warned him that if he lost in court, he'd be liable to pay legal fees. Cozens, who is self-represented, said he understood the potential consequences and opted to continue his case. The court's technical adviser returned his report, but only ten minutes before the hearing began. Given the parties and the judge had limited time to consider the report, Judge Edwards scheduled another hearing for a later date. Cozens asked what would happen in the meantime, and claimed that he would continue to be the subject of abuse on the website. He claimed he was getting 'hammered daily' by these kinds of posts, and Reddit doesn't do anything about it. 'The post is absolutely disgusting. I'm getting this daily, they're not.' Reddit's lawyers offered to provide Cozens with a direct email to help him report posts and comments on the site.
