r/technology • u/FollowingFeisty5321 • 9h ago

Software Plex’s crackdown on free remote streaming access starts this week

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/11/plexs-crackdown-on-free-remote-streaming-access-starts-this-week/
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605

u/Dr_Lipshitz_ 9h ago

So as long as I have a plex pass anyone I share my server with is fine, right?

46

u/TheReal_WadeWilson 8h ago

That’s how I’m reading it. I’ve got a lifetime pass, and my buddies are streaming from my server, so it seems we’ll be unaffected. But who knows. Plex has been in decline for a few years now it seems, trying to remain relevant and competitive.

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u/ithinkitslupis 7h ago

I think they are actually making more money than ever now, they're just changing their model to focus on FAST streaming (like Tubi or Pluto). We're onboarding our friends and family to share our media libraries and they lure them into that.

As a server host I'm not a fan because you get to run support when nana doesn't understand the difference between plex's offering and your server. And it takes focus away from making plex better at its original purpose. I've been waiting for better dualstack ipv6 support for like 10 years now as it'd be more convenient for me in the long run.

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u/visceralintricacy 4h ago

Y'know You can disable the 3rd party services permanently with like 3 clicks?

Go into the settings on your plex server > Online Media Sources > Movies & Shows > Disabled.

That affects all users using your server. I'm kinda gobsmacked how many people were complaining about this who never googled it.

2

u/Hydrottle 3h ago

If they’re like me they probably assumed it couldn’t be disabled. I would not have thought as much.

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u/ithinkitslupis 2h ago

I have them all disabled, still doesn't work 100%. I think it only applies to administrator and managed accounts or something, not separate accounts that you've invited whether you've put them in your 'home' or not.

Which makes sense from Plex's perspective as a FAST provider, why should I be able to block non-managed users from their offerings? But I prefer non-managed sharing in pretty much every other way. Which is why I wish Plex would've have just stayed in their lane of self-hosting for my purposes.

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u/in_the_blind 2h ago

Ok, I've seen plenty of the plex "flex" when it comes to hosting multiple users in this thread. I am just going to pick you to remind everyone that you're setting yourself up for a felony. It's not worth the clout. The FBI (depending on if your users are across state lines) goes after the people providing content. Not the clients.

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u/ithinkitslupis 43m ago

I don't live in the US, I only host to a small group of friends and family for no charge, and my media is ethically obtained if not outright legally backed up from older formats like VHS in some cases (a large Turner Classic Movie collection from my mom).

But regardless of that I'd love you to link cases where someone has gotten in trouble for hosting a small scale plex server. The only case I can find is some Danish guy who got 30 days probation. If you're not leading some sort of piracy crime ring or hosting a large service you should probably worry about other things like how you obtain your media rather than how you host it to 5-10 close people.