Previously, people outside the server owner’s network could access the owner’s media library for free through Plex. Under new rules announced in March, to provide users with remote access to their servers, a server owner needs a Plex Pass subscription, which starts at $7 per month. Alternatively, a person can remotely access another person’s Plex server by purchasing their own Plex Pass or Remote Watch Pass, which is a subscription with fewer features than Plex Pass and which Plex began selling in April at a starting price of $2 per month.
Plex’s new rules went into effect on April 29. According to a recent Plex Forum post by a Plex employee, which How-To Geek spotted today, the changes are set to begin this week, with remote access requiring a subscription for people using Plex’s Roku OS app. The Plex employee added:
Plex started out in 2009 as a Mac port of the Xbox Media Center project, before evolving into a media server company and more recently a streaming service provider. Its new remote access rules will be a test for the company, which has long been challenging users with a number of changes over the past year, including a price increase for Plex Pass, the expansion of renting officially licensed movies and the introduction of social features and a mobile app redesign.
Plex has previously stressed the need to maintain “increasing costs”, including providing support for multiple devices and codecs. It also said it needs funding to implement new features, including integration with Common Sense Media, a new “bespoke server management app” to manage server users, and “an open and documented API for server integration, including custom metadata agents,” according to a March blog post.
In January 2024, TechCrunch reported that Plex was close to profitability and raised $40 million in funding (Plex raised a $50 million growth equity round in 2021). Theoretically, the new remote access rules could also increase subscription revenue and help Plex backers see a return on their investment.
However, Plex’s growth may alienate longtime users who have relied on Plex as a media server for years and who are not interested in subscriptions, FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) channels, or renting movies. However, Plex is unlikely to abandon its streaming business. In 2023, Scott Hancock, Plex’s then-vice president of marketing, said that Plex would have more people using its online streaming service than using its media server features by 2022. For people wanting a software package focused more on media hosting, Plex alternatives like Jellyfin are looking increasingly attractive.
This story was originally published on Ars Technica.
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