Plex Makes Streaming Media Easier for People Struggling to Find What to Watch and Where to Watch it, Now Offering One Window into All Streaming Services
A few years ago we noted that Plex was starting to look almost like an operating system instead of just an app. The all-in-one streaming service took another step in that direction with two big additions announced today. First off, Plex is joining the fight to become the universal source for streaming content as it fully rolls out Plex Discover (a universal content search tool, and a new universal watchlist that will further help streamers find the content they want to watch and then launch it without bouncing in and out of apps.
Plex pulls it all into one easy-to-navigate window, making it a one-stop-shop for all of your favorite media. Considering reports estimate that 60% of global consumers find the process of navigating multiple apps to be frustrating, and have spent about 600 million minutes collectively trying to figure out what to watch on their myriad of paid and free streaming services, streaming without struggle is a massive problem that Plex now solves. Plex puts the new features together with already existing features such as the ability to integrate TV signals with 3rd party tuners like the HD HomeRun, its own on-demand movie service, Internet-based channels, podcast player, music service and the ability to save, share and access owners own movies, music and tv selections.
Plex Discover
According to a J.D. Power survey, the average consumer now has between four and five different streaming services, and a recent Horowitz Research Report shows 49% of people find it hard to know what shows are on which services, while 44% say they often have a hard time finding something to watch at all. Many essentially give up altogether.
By utilizing partnerships with services like Just Watch Plex says that its new Discover source will do for streaming media what Google did for the Internet “Help take an overwhelming experience and simplify it”. It does so by allowing you to plug any movie or show into https://watch.plex.tv/ and see which service it is on. From there, if your movie or show is streaming on a service you have, you can launch it from Plex. Users should note that they will have to actually have the service on their device in order to get to the content. Plex does not for instance have a built-in Netflix player etc.
Plex Universal Watchlist: Like an Amazon Wish List for movies and TV shows
The Univeral Watchlist feature will be a big addition to the service. It will help solve the problem of always having to remember what service has what show, just find it and out it in the watchlist. On top of that if the title isn’t available on a service you have, you can simply add it and see where to find it when you are ready. This means no more scrolling for hours on end looking for something to enjoy. Plex will even show you newly available titles from your Universal Watchlist when they are on one of your services.
“We have been saying for years that our goal was to create a one-stop-shop for all the entertainment that matters to you, and today we put a massive piece of that puzzle in place,” said Keith Valory, CEO of Plex. “With new streaming services, movies, and shows constantly coming available, it’s time to tame the media chaos and that’s what we aim to do with these new features. In short, we know it’s painful to find what to watch. We just want to get you there as quickly as possible.”
Will these features work on streaming devices?
At the moment the ability to launch a title from Plex and automatically open an app is supported on Android TV, Fire TV, Apple TV, Web, and Mobile platforms. The universal search though will be supported across all devices.
