Wikipedia

Plex Inc.

Plex Inc.is an American software company that runs its namesakead-supportedstreaming mediaservice that provides television shows and movies to users worldwide, and further provides a platform to discuss and discover content across all major subscriptionstreaming services.Plex also developsmedia server softwareand a series of apps that enables users to stream their personal media collections from their servers to their various devices. Plex Inc. is based inCampbell, California.[1]

Plex Inc.
Company typePrivate
FoundedDecember 2009;14 years ago(2009-12)
FounderElan Feingold, Cayce Ullman, Scott Olechowski
HeadquartersCampbell, CA,U.S.
Key people
  • Keith Valory
  • (president and CEO)
ProductsClient–serversoftware,streaming media
Number of employees
≈ 100 (2019)
Websiteplex.tv

History

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Plex began as afreewarehobby project in December 2007 when developer Elan Feingold created a media center application for hisMacbyportingthe media playerXBMC(since renamed Kodi) toMac OS X.[2]Around the same time, Cayce Ullman and Scott Olechowski—software executives who had recently sold their previous company toCisco—were also looking to port XBMC to Mac OS X, and noticed Feingold's progress in the XBMConline forums.They contacted him and offered support and funding, and they formed a three-person team in January 2008.[3][4]

The team released early versions of the port, called OSXBMC,[5]intended for eventual full integration into Mac OS X.[2]The developers continued collaborating with the Linux-based XBMC project until May 21, 2008. Due to different goals from the XBMC team, they forked the code that became Plex, and published it onGitHub.The OSXBMC code was kept roughly in sync with the upstream XBMC code.[6]In July 2008, the project was renamed Plex, which the developers said was chosen because "it evokes 'cineplex' and the suffix means 'comprising a number of parts'".[7]

In December 2009, Plex, Inc. was incorporated with Ullman as CEO and Feingold as chief technology officer.[8][9][10][11]At that time, Plex had 130 apps, the most popular of which were viewers foriTunesmovies trailers,YouTube,Hulu,Netflix,MTVmusic videos,BBC iPlayerandVimeo.Feingold said Plex apps had been downloaded about one million times.[5][12]Keith Valory became president and CEO in 2013.[13]

As of July 2016,Plex had 65 employees.[14]In December 2019, Plex launched anad-supported streaming serviceof movies and television shows from content sources includingWarner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution,MGM,Lionsgate,Regency EnterprisesandLegendary.[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]As of August 2019,Plex had about 100 global employees.[23]

In February 2024, Plex TV started offering movies for rental.[24] In April 2024, Plex partnered with T-Mobile.[25]

Plex Media Server

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Plex Media Server
Initial release2008;16 years ago(2008)
Stable release
Server:v.1.40.2.8395-c67dce28e (April 18, 2024;7 months ago(2024-04-18)[26])[±]
Operating system
Platformx86,ARM
Available in43 (server) languages[27]
TypeMedia serverandplayer
License
Websiteplex.tv

Plex Media Server (PMS) is free software that enables users to create aclient–serverfor movies, television shows, and music. Free Plex accounts can share personal media libraries among a user's own collection of devices or with other users. Plex Media Server organizes movie and television content and adds posters, plot summaries, cast and crew lists, technical details, critical reviews, andsubtitles.Plex Media Server is also capable oftranscodingfiles if thecodecis incompatible with the device playing the media.[28]Plex does not support DVD and Blu-raydisk imagesand menus, saying, "these formats just don't fit into the idea behind the Plex ecosystem."[29]Plex Media Server can run onWindows,macOS,Linux,FreeBSD,someNASdevices, someNetgearrouters and theNvidia Shield TV.[30][31]For music content, it can automatically organize files by metadata tags such as title, artist, album, genre, year, and popularity.[32][33][34]It can also acquire content fromiTunes,iPhoto,Apertureand the Internet.[35][36][37]

Plex Web App is a browser-based interface for users to manage libraries, server settings, and watch content.

A Plex Media Server can function as ahome theater PCand can stream content to Plex'sfront-endmedia playerclient applications that run on a myriad of devices and web browsers.[38][39][40]The media player applications are Plex, Plex Web App, Plexamp, and Plex Dash, which provide a way for the user to manage and play content from a Plex server.[41][42]The Plex app is the successor to the Plex Media Player, and runs on a multitude of platforms including Android,Apple TV,Android TV,Chromecast,Roku OS,iOS,iPadOS,PlayStation,Sonos,Oculus Go,webOS,Tizen,Windows,Xbox,andmacOS.Player applications on computers andSmart TVplatforms are free of charge, while the apps oniPhone,iPadandAndroidphones and tablets require a one-time $5 activation fee to stream from a server.[43]Plex's apps largely relied on the native video player and supported codecs of the streaming device's operating system. In 2018, Plex began rolling out a media player based onmpvto support additional codecs.[44]

Plex also offers Plex Pass, an optional paid-subscription service that adds additional features to its server software and player apps such as mobilesynchronization,metadatafetching for music,multi-usersupport,parental controls,over-the-toplive TV and DVR, trailers, extras, andcross-sellingoffers.[45]

In 2016, Plex launched Plex Cloud for Plex Pass subscribers, which supportedcloud-based servers. Plex's launch partner wasAmazon,and the service was compatible withAmazon Cloud Drive.[46]Users were critical of the service, noting that Amazon seemed to impose upload limits.[47]The service also supportedOneDrive,DropboxandGoogle Drive.The service was discontinued in November 2018 amid technical problems and concerns of pirated content.[48]

Plex Media Server has often been associated withpirated content.In 2019,The Vergeheadlined that Plex "makes piracy just another streaming service".[49]

Streaming media

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In 2019, Plex introduced anad-supportedvideo on demand(AVOD) streaming service and free-to-stream live TV channels.[50][51] Its content partners includeWarner Bros. Television Studios,[52]MGM,Lionsgate,Legendary,Crackle,Endemol Shine,Shout! Studios,Regency Enterprises,Kidoodle TV andA24.[53][54]Plex can also be used as a client forTidaland hostspodcasts.[55]In 2022, Plex added a "Discovery" feature which aggregates content from other streaming media sources.[56]As of 2023, Plex had 16 million active monthly streaming users.[57]

In 2020, Plex announced that it would introduce a movie and television show rental marketplace.[58]Its movie rental service launched in February 2024.[59]

See also

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References

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  1. ^Plex (April 14, 2021)."Streaming Media Platform Plex Raises $50 Million in Growth Equity to Become the One-Stop-Shop for Movies and TV".GlobeNewswire News Room(Press release).RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  2. ^ab"Interview with the OSXBMC Developers – Automated Home".April 29, 2008.Archivedfrom the original on August 22, 2016.RetrievedJuly 10,2016.
  3. ^"Behind the App: The Story of Plex".Lifehacker.July 30, 2014.Archivedfrom the original on April 11, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  4. ^"Scott Olechowski Inventions, Patents and Patent Applications - Justia Patents Search".patents.justia.Archivedfrom the original on July 6, 2022.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  5. ^ab"CrunchGear Interview: We talk to the lead developer of Plex Media Center for Mac OS X: It was doing Boxee-like stuff before Boxee was cool".January 15, 2010. Archived fromthe originalon June 20, 2010.RetrievedJuly 6,2016.
  6. ^"XBMC for Mac forked for a separate project called PLEX (formerly known as" OSXBMC ")".May 23, 2008. Archived fromthe originalon August 21, 2009.RetrievedMarch 13,2009.
  7. ^"Announcing Plex".Plex.July 5, 2008.RetrievedMay 20,2023.
  8. ^Stephen, Bijan (July 23, 2019)."Plex makes piracy just another streaming service".The Verge.Archivedfrom the original on November 6, 2019.RetrievedNovember 18,2019.
  9. ^"Plex, Inc. Company Profile - Bloomberg Markets".Bloomberg.Archivedfrom the original on July 27, 2020.RetrievedNovember 18,2019.
  10. ^"Happy Holidays from Plex! – Plex".December 24, 2010.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 10,2016.
  11. ^"Laika Revealed – Plex".October 28, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  12. ^Anderson, Kevin (October 7, 2009)."Thinking inside the box".Guardian.Archivedfrom the original on June 5, 2016.RetrievedDecember 17,2016.
  13. ^"Executive Bios".Plex.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  14. ^"About Plex – Media Server – Media Streaming Server".Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  15. ^Salkowitz, Rob."With Warner Bros Partnership, Plex Looks To Flex Its Media Muscles".Forbes.Archivedfrom the original on July 8, 2020.RetrievedJune 29,2020.
  16. ^"Plex partners with Lionsgate to expand its ad-supported video library".TechCrunch.September 18, 2019.Archivedfrom the original on July 8, 2020.RetrievedJuly 7,2020.
  17. ^"Plex Is Making Itself Impossible to Ignore as a Go-To Streaming Service".Gizmodo.January 8, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on May 14, 2020.RetrievedMay 12,2020.
  18. ^"The best ways to legally stream movies and TV for free".Popular Science.Archivedfrom the original on April 2, 2020.RetrievedMay 12,2020.
  19. ^Hern, Alex (March 23, 2020)."10 streaming services to help get you through self-isolation".Newsweek.Archivedfrom the original on April 13, 2020.RetrievedMay 12,2020.
  20. ^Ricker, Thomas (November 29, 2018)."Plex now streams cheap Tidal music subscriptions".The Verge.Archivedfrom the original on April 17, 2019.RetrievedNovember 18,2019.
  21. ^"Plex will stream free, ad-supported Warner Bros. movies and TV shows".Engadget.August 29, 2019.Archivedfrom the original on September 6, 2019.RetrievedNovember 18,2019.
  22. ^Roettgers, Janko (August 29, 2019)."Inside Plex's Quest to Become a One-Stop Shop for Digital Media".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on December 3, 2019.RetrievedNovember 18,2019.
  23. ^Roettgers, Janko (August 29, 2019)."Inside Plex's Quest to Become a One-Stop Shop for Digital Media".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on April 22, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  24. ^Purdy, Kevin (February 8, 2024)."Plex, where people typically avoid Hollywood fees, now offers movie rentals".Ars Technica.RetrievedJune 10,2024.
  25. ^Plex (April 30, 2024)."Streaming Media Company Plex Partners with T-Mobile, One of the Nation's Biggest Advertisers, to Expand Its Connected TV Reach".Globe Newswire.RetrievedJune 10,2024.
  26. ^"Media Server Downloads".Plex.RetrievedApril 18,2024.
  27. ^"PlexMediaServer Translations - Get Localization".Archived fromthe originalon October 8, 2014.RetrievedJuly 2,2016.
  28. ^"Transcoding Media".Plex Support.RetrievedMay 20,2023.
  29. ^"Why are ISO, VIDEO_TS, and other Disk Image Formats Not Supported?".Plex Support.RetrievedMay 26,2023.
  30. ^"Best Media Streaming Devices - Live streaming apps powered by Plex".Archivedfrom the original on January 17, 2023.RetrievedAugust 22,2017.
  31. ^"How do I set up my Plex Media Server on my Nighthawk X10 R9000 router?".NETGEAR KB.RetrievedJune 6,2023.
  32. ^"Identifying Music Media Using Embedded Metadata – Plex".Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  33. ^"Adding Music Media From Folders – Plex".Archivedfrom the original on August 9, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  34. ^"What metadata can an m4a file hold and how do I get at it?".August 25, 2015.Archivedfrom the original on January 17, 2023.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  35. ^"Plex 7 Adds iTunes and iPhoto Support and More".November 11, 2008.Archivedfrom the original on July 6, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  36. ^"Plex media center adds Aperture support, continues to shine – 9to5Mac".November 25, 2008.Archivedfrom the original on August 27, 2016.RetrievedJuly 8,2016.
  37. ^"Frankly my trailer, I don't give a playlist – Plex".July 31, 2014.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 26,2016.
  38. ^"Plex Media Server | 2021 Plex Pass Cost, Pricing, Plans & Free Trial".Cordcutting.October 15, 2016.Archivedfrom the original on February 6, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  39. ^"What Is Plex?".PCMAG.Archivedfrom the original on April 11, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  40. ^"Plex Terms of Service – Plex Media Server".Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2016.RetrievedJuly 7,2016.
  41. ^"Media software maker Plex launches new subscriber-only apps for music and server management".TechCrunch.April 16, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on January 17, 2023.RetrievedApril 17,2020.
  42. ^"Title of the page".The Kartina TV.Archived from the original on May 31, 2024.RetrievedJune 2,2024.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  43. ^"What is Plex Pass, anyway?".TechHive.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  44. ^Hollington, Jesse (December 6, 2018)."Plex begins rolling out Enhanced Video Player in Apple TV and iOS apps".iLounge.RetrievedMay 25,2023.
  45. ^"What Is Plex Pass? 10 Features Worth Paying For In 2020".AndroidPCReview.July 15, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on April 14, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  46. ^Perez, Sarah (September 26, 2016)."Plex partners with Amazon to launch a hardware-free media server, Plex Cloud".TechCrunch.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  47. ^Perez, Sarah (December 2, 2016)."Amazon isn't playing nice with Plex's new cloud service".TechCrunch.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  48. ^Roettgers, Janko (September 11, 2018)."Plex Shuts Down Its Cloud Service".Variety.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  49. ^Stephen, Bijan (July 23, 2019)."Plex makes piracy just another streaming service".The Verge.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  50. ^April 2020, Marshall Honorof 26."What is Plex? Everything you need to know".Tom's Guide.Archivedfrom the original on March 1, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  51. ^Welch, Chris (December 4, 2019)."Plex launches its free movie and TV streaming service".The Verge.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  52. ^"Plex is launching its own ad-supported video service, starting with content from Warner Bros. TV".TechCrunch.August 29, 2019.Archivedfrom the original on January 17, 2023.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  53. ^D'Alessandro, Anthony (August 25, 2020)."Atari VCS Will Offer Streaming Service Plex Following Game Console's November Launch".Deadline.Archivedfrom the original on February 27, 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2021.
  54. ^Harley, Nick (July 13, 2022)."The Best A24 Movies Streaming on Plex in July".Den of Geek.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  55. ^Perez, Sarah (November 29, 2018)."Plex teams with TIDAL to bring a discounted streaming music subscription to its media app".TechCrunch.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  56. ^Clark, Mitchell (April 6, 2022)."Plex's latest beta features can help you navigate every streaming service you have".The Verge.RetrievedMay 20,2023.
  57. ^Plex."Plex Closes Year with Billions of Minutes Watched; Doubles YOY Viewership".prnewswire(Press release).RetrievedJune 3,2023.
  58. ^Perez, Sarah (January 5, 2023)."Streamer Plex finally ready to launch a TV and movie rentals marketplace".TechCrunch.RetrievedMay 19,2023.
  59. ^Purdy, Kevin (February 8, 2024)."Plex, where people typically avoid Hollywood fees, now offers movie rentals".Ars Technica.RetrievedApril 5,2024.
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