Plex to Offer Free Ad-Supported Movies Through Warner Bros Partnership

Thursday August 29, 2019 4:04 PM PDT by Juli Clover
Plex today announced a new partnership with Warner Bros that will allow Plex to offer additional third-party content.

Plex will be able to provide users with free ad-supported movies and TV shows through the Plex app on Apple TV, iPhone, and other devices.


For those unfamiliar with Plex, it's an all-in-one media hub that organizes your entire library of content, from TV shows and movies to music, photos, and more. Plex also offers free access to news, web shows, podcasts, and live television access when paired with an antenna.

Rumors earlier this year suggested Plex was pursuing partnerships with rights holders and networks to bring ad-supported content to the Plex platform, and the Warner Bros deal appears to be the first content partnership to come out of those talks.

Plex says that it plans to begin offering feature film titles from Warner Bros later this year, adding to the live TV, podcast, and news content that it already offers. There's no word yet on what titles will be included nor specifically when the service will be launching.

Tag: Plex
33 comments


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SandboxGeneral
3 weeks ago
Ads. So sick of ads.

Ads, ads, everywhere an ad
Blockin' out the shows, breakin' my mind
Buy this, don't buy that, can't you read the ad?
Rating: 13 Votes
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mattyj2001
3 weeks ago
"Ad supported", so, decidedly not free.
Rating: 8 Votes
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tunastink
3 weeks ago
Equally excited and concerned by this news. My expectation for Plex is that it gives me a nice way to access my own media without being tracked and herded by media and advertising companies...

I like easy access to more content but not thrilled about Plex becoming another point of data collection about me and my preferences.
Rating: 7 Votes
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ersan191
3 weeks ago
Aka Warner Brothers gets metadata on all of Plex’s users and Plex makes a few bucks.

Might have to switch to Emby soon.
Rating: 7 Votes
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cardfan
3 weeks ago
Nope not exactly seeking movies with ads through Plex.
Rating: 5 Votes
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iObama
3 weeks ago
This is like when Napster went legal.
Rating: 4 Votes
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Westside guy
3 weeks ago
Hmm... I don't know of anyone who uses Plex for anything other than viewing their own media.

Generally when community-developed software starts looking for ways to monetize, that's when it's a good time for its users to start looking for alternatives. I saw some people on Slashdot talking about Jellyfin... has anyone here used it?
Rating: 4 Votes
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jontech
3 weeks ago
Ads

And how does this differ from every other ad ridden streaming service?
Rating: 4 Votes
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Phil A.
3 weeks ago
I had been a long time supporter of Plex but recently cancelled my subscription as it's been getting more and more bloated and core functionality was suffering.

This announcement does nothing to change my mind and if anything confirms my belief that they have moved too far away from what made Plex great
Rating: 3 Votes
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CarlJ
3 weeks ago

Aka Warner Brothers gets metadata on all of Plex’s users and Plex makes a few bucks.

That's not clear from the article. The question is, is there an opt in/out switch? Such that, if you don't choose to have access to the ad-supported movies, they don't get any data about you.
Rating: 3 Votes
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