Different Plex players behave differently. some force it some don’t. The Smart TV apps force it. The Roku app does not for example. There is talk of what the defined spec should be for all apps but afaik that decision has not been made yet.
In any case the preroll, like trailers, is technically an item in a playqueue. and can be skipped like you would skip an item in a playlist to the next track
good thing, otherwise we might need an ‘anydvd for plex’ to remove ‘prohibited user operations’ like the bad old DVD days.
Yes I noticed I could skip them, but not stop them. This was from the web interface. I do have a roku but dont use it much as I don’t like the interface very much.
I have successfully set all my family with Roku’s and 4th gen and newer Apple TV’s to force pre-roll and they are are externally connected its a 3 second spoof on the Netflix intro with my server name it only plays for movies not TV as I would see that as an annoyance
Just purchased the plex pass and was quite disappointed I could not force this feature as it was one of the main reasons I purchased the pass. My friends on my library are technomorons and trying to explain how to enable this is frustrating for all there different devices. Its bad enough I have to setup and show basic plex player functionality.
One of the questions posed by my friends for cutting the cord is “How will we know what is coming out?” and i thought plex could help solve or alleviate some of that with this feature. Every server is different with different users… It’s 10x easier for someone who is technically inclined to turn this off then it is for a user who asks “What do i do with Reddit”. The Admin should have 100% control over his/her server and its users access and abilities. Plain and simple.
Wow. People are really fired up over this feature request. I’m not dissatisfied with Plex as it does most everything I need in a media server and does it pretty damn well. But as with any other piece of software, it can always improve.
In terms of forcing a pre-roll, here’s the deal. As the admin and owner of the infrastructure and content that Plex is delivering, I’d like to have the freedom to push settings to the client. Not just pre-rolls…anything. I put a considerable amount of effort into curating the content, maintaining my NAS/Plex, and maintaining my infrastructure…why shouldn’t I have more control over it? Every piece of technology I run is geared towards a higher level of flexibility and control.
My user community (e.g. my family) may voice their displeasure if they don’t like settings I’ve forced, but that’s my responsibility…just like every other piece of technology I run in the house.
From a development perspective, I understand if it’s a matter of effort vs. reward…and I’d imagine that it may be complicated to pull off so I’m not going to have a meltdown if we can’t have it. But I think it would be a real benefit to those managing Plex.
Thank you.
The option to force pre-roll on all content would be so nice (or in specific libraries). And appears to be an easy thing to implement if they’ve already done the April Fools Day thing. It’d be really useful.
Perhaps a good compromise is having pre rolls be separate from from trailers and having the default on the client side on all devices be to accept them. This way it is a win/win for both sides of the argument. If enabled pre rolls on the server is active, the tech impaired family and friends don’t have to try and figure out how to turn them on, it just happens. Most basic users aren’t even aware it is an option to turn on. As for the people against it, you have the option to turn them off as you’ve always had.
I honestly don’t see why it is an issue in the first place. If someone is using another’s server, you get to see what they have chose to put there at their discretion not yours. You aren’t paying for a service from them and have absolutely no say in their choice of offerings. Even now one could make symlinks for filenames as part 1 for each movie and shoot it to the pre roll video and it would be in essence forced pre rolls. That is a lot of work for the same result though. I suppose someone could script it to take some of the tedious effort out. A simple option for the administrator to force pre rolls is much more elegant.
The paid ad comments I saw are silly. No business in their right mind is going to pay individuals to advertise on their private plex servers on an honor system of reporting views. It also seems like an entitled stance to state that it shouldn’t be up to the owner and operator of a personal private media server to show whatever that individual would like to. It would make it easier for content creators to place their pre roll this way and easily be able to update them down the road without having to encode the videos over and over again. Not everyone uses plex for commercial videos. Some of us use it for motorcycle videos, events, club meetings, tutorials, and more.
At any rate, this request has my vote.
About once every year or so, I have to invest in more storage for my Plex server. This is usually covered by asking my friends (users) to help cover the cost of more storage space by donating hardware etc. It would be very nice to be able to have a pre-roll on all content played from my server when another round of donations is needed. (Trying to spread this message to all my users through other media is just not reasonable, cause they all use different social media, some use email, some only use phone.)
I don’t want to force users to watch trailers or anything like that, so hopefully the “trailer” and “pre-roll” features can be configured separately.
I really wish the force pre-roll idea becomes reality. I do understand why Plex doesn’t want to enable this as I’ve read just about every comment on here regarding this feature. But, I (like many others) do not have a reliable way to speak to all clients at once. It would be very nice to just add a couple second pre-roll video speaking to upcoming maintenance rather than messaging some on one social media platform, then messaging some more on another. It’s a downright hassle. I’ve done my best to create a facebook page dedicated to the server that I only use to talk about upcoming movie additions or upgrade/maintenance coming. But, despite adding all of my clients (some don’t even have facebook, problem 1), people can simply remove themselves from the page (problem 2). Then, what do you know, they’re the first ones to call me when I’m doing server maintenance and they can’t access the server.
The only thing you have said that is correct is the first paragraph, every thing you said after that is complete tosh.
’I honestly don’t see why it is an issue in the first place. If someone is using another’s server, you get to see what they have chose to put there at their discretion not yours. You aren’t paying for a service from them and have absolutely no say in their choice of offerings.'
Absolute crap, the whole idea is to share your library so others can watch what they want - not for you to dictate what they see - ever - period.
’The paid ad comments I saw are silly. No business in their right mind is going to pay individuals to advertise on their private plex servers on an honor system of reporting views. It also seems like an entitled stance to state that it shouldn’t be up to the owner and operator of a personal private media server to show whatever that individual would like to. It would make it easier for content creators to place their pre roll this way and easily be able to update them down the road without having to encode the videos over and over again. Not everyone uses plex for commercial videos. Some of us use it for motorcycle videos, events, club meetings, tutorials, and more.
At any rate, this request has my vote.'
You are blinkered, go to eBay and just look at the amount of people selling plex shares for profit. Anyone wanting to ‘force’ anyone to see anything is just plain silly - open to abuse and has no real use case for someone just wanting to share a library with friends and family. All other reasons are just excuses. No one is saying people can’t share what they want, but people should have the right to reject it if they wan’t, and it is my right to reject it should I wish to do so. They are NOT broadcast companies trying to make a profit, and recovering their costs is no excuse - can’t afford it - DON’T DO IT.
,I really wish the force pre-roll idea becomes reality. I do understand why Plex doesn’t want to enable this as I’ve read just about every comment on here regarding this feature. But, I (like many others) do not have a reliable way to speak to all clients at once. It would be very nice to just add a couple second pre-roll video speaking to upcoming maintenance rather than messaging some on one social media platform, then messaging some more on another. It’s a downright hassle. I’ve done my best to create a facebook page dedicated to the server that I only use to talk about upcoming movie additions or upgrade/maintenance coming. But, despite adding all of my clients (some don’t even have facebook, problem 1), people can simply remove themselves from the page (problem 2). Then, what do you know, they’re the first ones to call me when I’m doing server maintenance and they can’t access the server.'
So long as there is a mechanism for people like me to turn it off at my client end - I don’t care what you do, or show with your server, or what ever excuse you chose to present in its defence.
This was one of the most stupid features Plex has ever introduced in the system.
That’s the whole point. No one is asking (from the users who actually want this feature) for there be a way to 100% force it to the clients. Yes, I used the word “force” in my last comment, but I’m simply asking for a way, for me on the admin side, to check a box that opts everyone in to seeing a pre-roll. If they want to opt out after that? By all means. Needing to walk every single person through the process just to try and get a couple second clip across is such a pain.
You are 100% entitled to your opinion that this feature would be worthless at the level requested. I’m not here to tell you that you are wrong or to try and change your mind. If I’m being completely blunt, I don’t care for your opinion on the topic. I’m just sharing mine, as I’m sure you don’t care for either.
Point is, there are people that want it, and if enough of them are out there and speak up, I feel it will be utilized in a way that will simply make our lives easier. Believe me, if I could have a couple second clip play that shows the server name with space for a quick note about upcoming maintenance, literally no one on my server would complain. So, for the use case scenario, it absolutely makes sense to me and my users.
Thats just the point, many have said they do wish to force it. Literally force it!!. For me its always only been about my right to opt out and I have made that quite clear . The fact that you are OK with me not watching any crap you decide to re-roll is not what most of the others want.
Just look at
See what I mean ?
And this post shows what is at the heat of the problem :-
I would like to point out that the difference is that Netflix and any other company have rules to adhere to (as far as content), some one sharing a library does not!!! WAKE UP!!
No wonder its FUBAR with attitudes like that. darcilicious should be ashamed.
I think it is quite clear what this thread has devolved to. Plex server admins vs. users of someone else’s Plex server. As has been stated multiple times, what server admin would not want this feature? If they choose to use it, it’s their choice. If they don’t like the option, they don’t use it.
Clearly server users on this thread do not appreciate it, which is definitely their opinion and they are absolutely entitled to it.
I feel if the user does not appreciate it, feel free to contact your server admin. You should know and trust this person, since they are sharing content they paid for, from a server they own, on an internet connection they also pay for, at no cost to the user.
If my parents contacted me asking to get rid of the pre-roll, I would happily remove it for them.
Sorry for the rambling. I just feel with the advent of the “Plex Movies and TV” Plex is getting moved to a model where server admins will begin to have less control over things and that bugs me a bit.
You have the total right to opt-out from any server that has a forced pre-roll. That just means you won’t get to watch any content on that person’s server. And seeing as the administrator of the server manages it, I see that as totally within their rights.
Then that’s where myself and others differ. I just want to be able to provide the best experience for my users. Having a tiny clip of the server name with a spot for upcoming maintenance is all I truly care about. I have a lot of active users on my server, and it sucks when 2/3 of them don’t have social media, and then the ones that do don’t always see when the updates are coming. But, if the week before I just “force” a pre-roll stating what’s coming up, it would be ideal. The option for them to disable it should always remain in my opinion. I just wish there was a way to initially opt everyone in, so they see it, and then it can be managed from there on the client end. Not it be disabled from the beginning, and me have to request everyone opt in, show more than half of them how to do it, and have some people not even care because it’s “too complicated”.
That way, the owner of the server has the right to pre-roll whatever they want to their users, and if the users are savvy enough to disable it (or the admin is nice enough to explain to everyone it CAN be disabled) then all is fair.
Provided I can opt out, fine I have no problem with that. The way it has been implemented in the past is a user can’t opt out - only skip once started to play.
A better way is a dialog box where I can choose who I have a pre-roll off and whom I don’t or no-one at all. Whether they admit it or not, Plex is abused and used for other purposes from what it is intended.
Its good that people share library, but this ‘its my server so I can force you to watch’ is all wrong. Anyone with half a brain can see this. Sadly thats the main mentality on here.
Where I get your point, I think you need to understand that people also do have the right to run their server their way. If you don’t agree with how someone will use a feature or run their server that doesn’t mean you should try and squash a feature that people like myself will use with the best intention. Even the way some things are implemented now I’m sure someone could find a way to use “incorrectly”. The sad truth is that use cases are all subjective.
For what I use my server for and for what my clients will see, I think it would be a great thing. If someone wants to pre-roll a video of a chicken for no reason whatsoever, so be it. That’s just something I’m glad I wouldn’t be a part of. lol Their clients will either adhere or discontinue use. Isn’t that how “terms of service” works on all programs anyway?
Again, just because someone COULD use it for bad, shouldn’t kill those that WILL use it for good. Just my opinion.
retro_amp, there is no reason to post to UmpaNet, he will continue to argue about this even under his gravestone. He feels like he is entitled and it’s his way or the highway. Of course if you run the server you should be able to do what you want with it, I quit replying to the idiot months ago.
