4 ms·

Plex's 200% Lifetime Pass price hike tries forcing users to another subscription

34 points by ndr42 5mo ago

xvxvx 5mo ago
I grabbed a lifetime pass for $99 many years ago and have certainly gotten my moneys worth. Hopefully they will keep honoring existing passes.
- abashore 5mo ago
  Has there been any indication that they may gate new versions or features behind more expensive plex pass subscriptions?
  - 404mm 5mo ago
    I haven’t heard about anything like that. But I do hear about campaigns focused on members with poor account hygiene and afaik they get their accounts terminated.
    - kotaKat 5mo ago
      It's already bad enough they took offense to people hosting in Hetzner (yes, I'm one of the many that hosts in a DC instead of at home). Sorry I didn't want the server overhead in my house, eh?
menno-sh 5mo ago
I cannot fathom why you'd pay $750 for Plex when Jellyfin is free.
- washadjeffmad 5mo ago
  Plex has become a platform, and I imagine a certain number of their customers are revenue generating providers. Emby still offers lifetime for $119 with a 30 device limit, but I'm not sure what it offers over Jellyfin. Are there any advantages to Plex outside of being able to easily share and manage library access to many users? It's been a decade since I've used it.
  - zetsurin 5mo ago
    Excellent automatic metadata determination. Dead easy to run/setup
- vitally3643 5mo ago
  I've never understood why anyone would tolerate paying any price to stream media they "own" from a server they own on a network they own to a device they own. At this point a Plex subscription is on par with a Netflix subscription in price, but you have to bring your own media. The only value Plex provides beyond the software is a STUN proxy to connect remote devices to your server behind a residential NAT. But Jellyfin is free and in a lot of cases it's trivial to get your server exposed to the internet. There's countless ways to do it that don't involve paying anyone anything, and more ways that cost far, far less than $750. Perpetually gobsmacked that people are willing to pay a subscription to access their own media on their own hardware. Why not just use Netflix at that point?
  - 404mm 5mo ago
    Convenience. Jellyfin is becoming better and better but still lacks proper support for certain (Apple) devices, while Plex mostly just works. That being said, Plex apps also lack proper support for HW decoding of some 4K codecs and their AppleTV situation is just plain sad (2 years without an update, no proper HW decoding). With the Pass being $750, I’m expecting Jellyfin to become a more popular alternative than ever. I’d personally never spend this kind of money on Plex.
    - Kirby64 5mo ago
      > That being said, Plex apps also lack proper support for HW decoding of some 4K codecs and their AppleTV situation is just plain sad (2 years without an update, no proper HW decoding). What does hardware decoding get me on an Apple TV? It seems plenty powerful enough to decode anything I’ve ever thrown at it.
      - xvolter 5mo ago
        The official Plex app hasn't been updated to take advantage of all the hardware decoding support available on the Apple TV. I moved to Infuse, a paid third-app, which I use to stream my Plex media content. Jellyfin official apps are sporadic though, so Infuse is popular for Jellyfin users because it is well maintained and allows you to direct stream content without transcoding as often as possible. -- I'm also the developer of Aviato Media Server (https://aviato.media https://aviato.media), which I just released publicly last week and is available only as a beta, and I am an ex-Plex employee.
- ezst 5mo ago
  I mean, that's probably what it is, a last squeeze while something somewhat remains of their Plex brand image, knowing the war to Jellyfin is over and lost. At that rate, Jellyfin could start a commercial entity, partner up with mullvad or whoever, and offer a STUN/TURN proxy service that they could charge cents/dollars a year and still make bank.
- joshstrange 5mo ago
  Have you used Jellyfin’s clients? I’ll be the first in line to complain about some issues with the Plex client [0] but it’s been remarkably stable over the decade+ I’ve used it. I did not enjoy the Jellyfin clients (or lack there of for some platforms) the last time I tried them (2-3 years ago). The Plex client, for all its warts, is much more user-friendly IMHO for the friends/family that might use one’s media server. [0] I could go on and on about things like how shitty Plex is for downloading content to your phone/iPad to take on a plane/offline.
  - ndr42 5mo ago
    I'm relatively new to Jellyfin but for iOS and tvOS Swiftfin is a joy to use. Edit: It's native and open source: https://github.com/jellyfin/swiftfin https://github.com/jellyfin/swiftfin
  - Saris 5mo ago
    I use Wholfin (https://github.com/damontecres/Wholphin https://github.com/damontecres/Wholphin) on my TV and it's really nice, it's meant to be familiar to users of Plex. On my phone I use Findroid (https://github.com/jarnedemeulemeester/findroid https://github.com/jarnedemeulemeester/findroid) Jellyfin works well enough, I switched over entirely a few months ago.
  - toraway 5mo ago
    Jellyfish has improved a bunch in the last few years, the front end is a lot more polished. I finally moved on from Plex a year ago after some kind of upsell nag on a basic feature after already paying for a plan. Although realtime detection of changes on the file system is still a little flaky for me (possibly how I’m running it).
tencentshill 5mo ago
They didn't have to become yet another second-rate streaming and rental platform. They could have remained the best home media server.
- dmonitor 5mo ago
  They had to have known that free options like Jellyfin were on their tails and pivoted to a revenue model that doesn't rely on competing with FOSS
Cider9986 5mo ago
Can someone explain the advantage of Plex over Stremio + TB + AIOStreams to me?
- gdulli 5mo ago
  For me it's that Xbox has a Plex app. I'm not willing to use Android TV devices or connect my TV to the internet.
  - jessyco 5mo ago
    Casting from ios is useful for me.
  - autoexec 5mo ago
    I'm pretty sure that Xbox is filled with ads and data collection just like an internet connected smart TV would be.
- forsalebypwner 5mo ago
  The UX of Plex is unbeatable, there are no obvious signs that the content is pirated, that + a great app ecosystem is very important if you're going to be sharing with friends and family.
ChrisArchitect 5mo ago
[dupe] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48193055 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48193055
mrbigbob 5mo ago
if you are in the apple ecosystem the Infuse video player can hook into jellyfin and it has a pretty nice UI. https://firecore.com/infuse https://firecore.com/infuse
- myvoiceismypass 5mo ago
  I also find Infuse to work better on AppleTV devices than the plex app itself for accessing plex libraries.

34 points by ndr42 5mo ago

xvxvx 5mo ago

I grabbed a lifetime pass for $99 many years ago and have certainly gotten my moneys worth. Hopefully they will keep honoring existing passes.

abashore 5mo ago
Has there been any indication that they may gate new versions or features behind more expensive plex pass subscriptions?
- 404mm 5mo ago
  I haven’t heard about anything like that. But I do hear about campaigns focused on members with poor account hygiene and afaik they get their accounts terminated.
  - kotaKat 5mo ago
    It's already bad enough they took offense to people hosting in Hetzner (yes, I'm one of the many that hosts in a DC instead of at home). Sorry I didn't want the server overhead in my house, eh?

menno-sh 5mo ago

I cannot fathom why you'd pay $750 for Plex when Jellyfin is free.

washadjeffmad 5mo ago
Plex has become a platform, and I imagine a certain number of their customers are revenue generating providers. Emby still offers lifetime for $119 with a 30 device limit, but I'm not sure what it offers over Jellyfin. Are there any advantages to Plex outside of being able to easily share and manage library access to many users? It's been a decade since I've used it.
- zetsurin 5mo ago
  Excellent automatic metadata determination. Dead easy to run/setup
vitally3643 5mo ago
I've never understood why anyone would tolerate paying any price to stream media they "own" from a server they own on a network they own to a device they own. At this point a Plex subscription is on par with a Netflix subscription in price, but you have to bring your own media. The only value Plex provides beyond the software is a STUN proxy to connect remote devices to your server behind a residential NAT. But Jellyfin is free and in a lot of cases it's trivial to get your server exposed to the internet. There's countless ways to do it that don't involve paying anyone anything, and more ways that cost far, far less than $750. Perpetually gobsmacked that people are willing to pay a subscription to access their own media on their own hardware. Why not just use Netflix at that point?
- 404mm 5mo ago
  Convenience. Jellyfin is becoming better and better but still lacks proper support for certain (Apple) devices, while Plex mostly just works. That being said, Plex apps also lack proper support for HW decoding of some 4K codecs and their AppleTV situation is just plain sad (2 years without an update, no proper HW decoding). With the Pass being $750, I’m expecting Jellyfin to become a more popular alternative than ever. I’d personally never spend this kind of money on Plex.
  - Kirby64 5mo ago
    > That being said, Plex apps also lack proper support for HW decoding of some 4K codecs and their AppleTV situation is just plain sad (2 years without an update, no proper HW decoding). What does hardware decoding get me on an Apple TV? It seems plenty powerful enough to decode anything I’ve ever thrown at it.
    - xvolter 5mo ago
      The official Plex app hasn't been updated to take advantage of all the hardware decoding support available on the Apple TV. I moved to Infuse, a paid third-app, which I use to stream my Plex media content. Jellyfin official apps are sporadic though, so Infuse is popular for Jellyfin users because it is well maintained and allows you to direct stream content without transcoding as often as possible. -- I'm also the developer of Aviato Media Server (https://aviato.media https://aviato.media), which I just released publicly last week and is available only as a beta, and I am an ex-Plex employee.
ezst 5mo ago
I mean, that's probably what it is, a last squeeze while something somewhat remains of their Plex brand image, knowing the war to Jellyfin is over and lost. At that rate, Jellyfin could start a commercial entity, partner up with mullvad or whoever, and offer a STUN/TURN proxy service that they could charge cents/dollars a year and still make bank.
joshstrange 5mo ago
Have you used Jellyfin’s clients? I’ll be the first in line to complain about some issues with the Plex client [0] but it’s been remarkably stable over the decade+ I’ve used it. I did not enjoy the Jellyfin clients (or lack there of for some platforms) the last time I tried them (2-3 years ago). The Plex client, for all its warts, is much more user-friendly IMHO for the friends/family that might use one’s media server. [0] I could go on and on about things like how shitty Plex is for downloading content to your phone/iPad to take on a plane/offline.
- ndr42 5mo ago
  I'm relatively new to Jellyfin but for iOS and tvOS Swiftfin is a joy to use. Edit: It's native and open source: https://github.com/jellyfin/swiftfin https://github.com/jellyfin/swiftfin
- Saris 5mo ago
  I use Wholfin (https://github.com/damontecres/Wholphin https://github.com/damontecres/Wholphin) on my TV and it's really nice, it's meant to be familiar to users of Plex. On my phone I use Findroid (https://github.com/jarnedemeulemeester/findroid https://github.com/jarnedemeulemeester/findroid) Jellyfin works well enough, I switched over entirely a few months ago.
- toraway 5mo ago
  Jellyfish has improved a bunch in the last few years, the front end is a lot more polished. I finally moved on from Plex a year ago after some kind of upsell nag on a basic feature after already paying for a plan. Although realtime detection of changes on the file system is still a little flaky for me (possibly how I’m running it).

tencentshill 5mo ago

They didn't have to become yet another second-rate streaming and rental platform. They could have remained the best home media server.

dmonitor 5mo ago
They had to have known that free options like Jellyfin were on their tails and pivoted to a revenue model that doesn't rely on competing with FOSS

Cider9986 5mo ago

Can someone explain the advantage of Plex over Stremio + TB + AIOStreams to me?

gdulli 5mo ago
For me it's that Xbox has a Plex app. I'm not willing to use Android TV devices or connect my TV to the internet.
- jessyco 5mo ago
  Casting from ios is useful for me.
- autoexec 5mo ago
  I'm pretty sure that Xbox is filled with ads and data collection just like an internet connected smart TV would be.
forsalebypwner 5mo ago
The UX of Plex is unbeatable, there are no obvious signs that the content is pirated, that + a great app ecosystem is very important if you're going to be sharing with friends and family.

ChrisArchitect 5mo ago

[dupe] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48193055 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48193055

mrbigbob 5mo ago

if you are in the apple ecosystem the Infuse video player can hook into jellyfin and it has a pretty nice UI. https://firecore.com/infuse https://firecore.com/infuse

myvoiceismypass 5mo ago
I also find Infuse to work better on AppleTV devices than the plex app itself for accessing plex libraries.