diff --git a/youtube_dl/extractor/vlive.py b/youtube_dl/extractor/vlive.py
index 7f9e99ec2..a672ea9c5 100644
--- a/youtube_dl/extractor/vlive.py
+++ b/youtube_dl/extractor/vlive.py
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ def _real_extract(self, url):
         status_params = self._download_json(
             'http://www.vlive.tv/video/status?videoSeq=%s' % video_id,
             video_id, 'Downloading JSON status',
-            headers={'Referer': url})
+            headers={'Referer': url.encode('utf-8')})
         status = status_params.get('status')
         air_start = status_params.get('onAirStartAt', '')
         is_live = status_params.get('isLive')