Plex Launches 'Plex News' With Free Content From 190 Providers

[MacRumors]

Plex today announced the launch of Plex News, a new personalized streaming news service that's available to Plex users. Plex News includes national, international, and local news from 190 providers like CBS News, CNN, A+J, IGN, Cheddar, Financial Times, Mic, and more.

Plex News is a free service and it does not require a Plex Pass or other subscription fee, but it is supported by ads. Over time, it learns about your interests based on news channels you choose to watch and those you choose to skip, providing a personalized news hub.

After opening up Plex, there's a "News" section that's been added to the home page, with a series of short news clips that you can flip through on a range of topics. A "Personalize News" feature lets you select a location and topics of interest to narrow down the selection of news sources that will be displayed. News can be browsed by category or from the home screen suggestions.

The new feature is built around Watchup, a news startup that Plex purchased earlier this year. Watchup, like Plex News, offered up a selection of news channels in one easy-to-watch location.

Plex says Plex News is rolling out to all users over the course of the next 48 hours, starting with Plex Pass subscribers first. It is available on Apple TV and iOS devices, along with Android TV, Nvidia Shield, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and Android Mobile.

The Plex app can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Article Link: Plex Launches 'Plex News' With Free Content From 190 Providers

 

[EdT]

I am guilty of manually weeding out sites I disagree with myself, but with all of the targeted apps removing views and opinions that we don't agree with I feel that the reactions of people to news is going to become more partisan than it already is.

 

[canadianreader]

News and especially bad news is a lucrative business and as a bonus you get to brainwash the masses and have them at your command.

 

[BeatCrazy]

I don't see where this is, in my Plex apps? I know it said it was rolling out in the next 48 hours.. should I be looking for this in the same section as my Recording Schedule, Program Guide, etc?

 

[mmm1345]

um no. I don't want this crap on my own personal media streamer. It's a step closer towards them trying to shove ads at you and tracking your habits. I haven't used it yet, so I'm hoping this is something I can turn off.

 

[Sill]

um no. I don't want this crap on my own personal media streamer. It's a step closer towards them trying to shove ads at you and tracking your habits. I haven't used it yet, so I'm hoping this is something I can turn off.

Exactly. I've always doubted the motives of the Plex developers, given that they make their customers sign up for an account just to stream their own movies from their own equipment to their own TV. Kind of strange that they want your viewing habits "in the cloud", and I have yet to see a good reason why. My own experiences with Plex have been well documented here, and I am pretty sure their wonderful software is just spyware in disguise.

 

[LewisChapman]

Just such a waste of development resources in my opinion. There's plenty other aspects of the Plex that need attention!

 

[iDento]

I love Plex, I've build a multimedia sever and multiple clients around it, but this is not what I need and I'm pretty that I'm not alone.

What about fixing subtitles? Look at what Infuse is doing with subtitles and learn.
What about updating the iOS to play local files, like Android?
What about killing some bugs in the PlayStation app that's very slow and keep asking to reconnect the server with a 4 digits code for no reason?

 

[yiasou]

Which plex customer actually wants this ****? Yep that’s right, no one. Stop wasting time developing a million new features. Stabilise your platform for god sake.

 

[archer75]

I want this. I use haystack often. Which is an app that brings news from all over the internet together in one place and customizes it to you. Now I can get that in plex which I use regularly.