Plex Raises Price for Plex Pass, No Longer Offers Free Remote Playback for Personal Media

[jsavvy]

I used to love Plex years ago when plug-ins were a thing. When I decided to move to a new platform it came down to Emby or Jellyfin. I ultimately went with Emby because it was more stable during my testing. I really wanted Jellyfin to work for me. If Jellyfin is more stable now and could do the skip intro function I might be willing to switch.

 

[AF_APPLETALK]

I recently considered moving to Home Sharing running off of a Mac mini, but decided not to, because I can keep plex running off of a Dell micro pc with FreeBSD. I really wish Apple would have kept the time capsule around and integrated a networked media server feature to it.

 

[Plutonius]

I'm glad that I bought lifetime Plex years ago.

I recommend Plex but there are now multiple other options.

 

[djpatrickb]

Luckily I bought a lifetime pass on a black friday sale years ago.

I'm with ya! Paid $75 for mine back in 2020.

 

[ThankYouRob]

As a longtime Plex user, I understand the price increases, they offer a lot for what Plex does and can do - are there better options out there? Sure. But Plex is the top dog in the market for what they do. I mean, you can get the Plex app on ANY device (I think) and has been actively updated. People seem to think, "oh I'll use this free Plex app" - which for the most part is most likely used for streaming pirated content on peoples home servers...then when they put a price tag/hike up the cost, it upsets you? How about supporting developers which (love or hate the features) are providing a mostly solid app/experience? There is a cost to things being free, eventually.

 

[attohs]

As a longtime Plex user, I understand the price increases, they offer a lot for what Plex does and can do - are there better options out there? Sure. But Plex is the top dog in the market for what they do. I mean, you can get the Plex app on ANY device (I think) and has been actively updated. People seem to think, "oh I'll use this free Plex app" - which for the most part is most likely used for streaming pirated content on peoples home servers...then when they put a price tag/hike up the cost, it upsets you? How about supporting developers which (love or hate the features) are providing a mostly solid app/experience? There is a cost to things being free, eventually.

The developers removed plugins (third party developers were providing much more utility) and added features I do not want. Why would I continue to support them? Infuse has always been a better client, and now Emby and Jellyfin especially have the developers I want to support.

 

[BGPL]

Good thing I got the lifetime pass!

 

[ThankYouRob]

The developers removed plugins (third party developers were providing much more utility) and added features I do not want. Why would I continue to support them? Infuse has always been a better client, and now Emby and Jellyfin especially have the developers I want to support.

I got into Plex right after they removed the plug-ins feature, so I don't know Plex WITH plug-ins.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Glad I bought the lifetime pass years ago. Never had any real issues with Plex.

 

[Spongmincer]

Been a Plex user for years now. Glad I got the lifetime pass all those years ago. Quite expensive now but still worth it I think. I’ve tried other options, more out of interest, but nothing I’ve tried is as simple to use at the server and player sides.

Agreed, alll the extras they started including were extras I didn’t need or was interested in but they can be disabled if you just want to keep it as a straight forward home media server.

 

[attohs]

I got into Plex right after they removed the plug-ins feature, so I don't know Plex WITH plug-ins.

Calling yourself a longtime user is misleading then. I'm a longtime user, having purchased Plex Pass Lifetime in 2011. Plugins were removed in 2019. Lifetime ends in 2025 for me.

 

[spazzcat]

I switched to infuse a long time ago, it meets my needs. $10 a year.

Does it intergrate with Apple TV app?

 

[latweek]

Plex, a wholly owned subsidiary of Initech.

 

[attohs]

There is a Plex employee posting personal information / server stats about users complaining about these changes to try and shame the users. Not a good look! https://forums.plex.tv/t/remote-streaming-will-be-a-plex-pass-feature/909369/65

 

[Mazda 3s]

Since I have a lifetime pass, I'll continue using it. There is no need to move to another platform when I'm set for life here -- well, until they eventually trash the whole platform. Nothing lasts forever, right?

I've been using it for over a decade and have grown accustomed to it. I have Plex running 24/7/365 on my Mac Mini as a media server with external 8TB and 18TB USB drives hooked up to it. It has my MP3 collection dating back 25 years from my college days (yay, Napster), along with all the movies and TV shows I've amassed. Then, of course, all the Roku TVs in the house access it using the Plex app and I have remote access from any device anywhere.

 

[oneMadRssn]

I wish Plex would stick to the core mission of home theater. I'm far from a power user, but what features do they think needs to be developed? I could give a darn about all the stuff Plex themselves streams, the whole point was to access my personal library.

They've done a ton for core home theater over the years. HDR to SDR tone mapping, intro/credits detection, ad-skipping on recorded OTA broadcasts, DVR for OTA broadcasts, Plexamp music player, recognizing and organizing different editions of the same movie, pre-transcoding optimized versions of content, and more.

Don't get me wrong. I have a few bones to pick with Plex. But they've done a lot to improve home theater experiences.

 

[d3vilsadvocate]

Infuse is a must for mac users. Mostly because it plays everything including dolby atmos/dolby vision without any conversion happening on the server device

You can, however, use a plex database in conjunction with Infuse.

 

[tgwaste]

Taking away features for existing users is a pretty ****** move. If anything the new rules should only apply for new accounts, and not existing installations.

You suck, Plex.

They arent taking anything away from existing PAID users. Only free users, which is their right.

 

[attohs]

They arent taking anything away from existing PAID users. Only free users, which is their right.

They are taking away Watch Together from everybody. This new "Plex Experience" coming in late April does not match the current Plex. Pay more, get less. https://support.plex.tv/articles/frequently-asked-questions-watch-together/

 

[Agent4797]

I got my lifetime Plex Pass for $70 back in the days and honestly it's one of the best purchases I have ever made, even for $250 it feels like a very good deal for what you get

 

[FasterQuieter]

I wonder if they'll finally have enough money to make audio sync with video on the Apple TV. I've had to access my Plex library through Infuse for years. They don't seem to care. Lifetime pass member myself.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Calling yourself a longtime user is misleading then. I'm a longtime user, having purchased Plex Pass Lifetime in 2011. Plugins were removed in 2019. Lifetime ends in 2025 for me.

Plex "Lifetime" has an end date?

 

[pacmania1982]

I switched to JellyFin a few months ago. Can't say I miss anything about Plex.

 

[midkay]

Plex is great. Bought lifetime years ago & so incredibly happy with it.

 

[attohs]

Plex "Lifetime" has an end date?

Yeah, the day I stop using it. I've been running a parallel Jellyfin docker container and now the Plex container is going into the bin. From Infuse you would never know the difference.