It may be your content on your server using your internet connection, but you’re using Plex’s software. It’s not freeware.
So why don’t you just accept that they and RAISED THE PRICE, and ignore the rest. Geesh, this isn’t hard.
Either you have to buy a Plex Pass, OR your remote users have to subscribe to the Remote Watch Pass. Technically, your remote users could buy a Plex Pass themselves, but that probably doesn’t make sense unless they also manage their own content server.
If you have a Plex Pass, nothing changes for you or anyone who uses your server remotely.
People who think Jellyfin is the answer should be encouraged to give it a try. I did, and it didn’t take long before I realized it’s not in the same league as Plex. Report a problem and see how that goes. Far too often the response is, “we’re just a few open source developers, so if you have the time maybe you can fix this yourself.”
There is a lot of value in paying Plex for what they provide. Not perfect by any stretch, but FAR better than Jellyfin given their business model.
They don’t have to pay anything to watch their own self-hosted media libraries. And you won’t have to pay anything to watch their content, since you have a Plex Pass. I fail to see how this makes Plex worse for anyone, let alone everyone.
And you can.
@Divideby0
That sounds soothing. Thanks for explaining!
hello everyone, if anyone knows the answer, will this affect my family and friends i use to subscribe but then bought a lifetime pass for my server because i am constantly adding content, will this change effect my family members access to my server for remote streaming of my content, yes I am a Plex Pass Lifetime subsciber just looking for some insight
Thanks Plex Fam!
is the remote watch pass a part of the lifetime plex pass?
Plex pass either monthly or lifetime includes remote streaming among other features.
Remote watch pass is specialized to only allow remote streaming.
ok thank you for explaining. by the way i appreciate the quick response 
Well I may as well put in my two cents so I can say that I was here, on one of the biggest days ever for the Plex community. 
I think the remote streaming pricing change sucks. They have the right to do it and we do not have the right to free services, but I still think it is heavy-handed and the Plex Pass price increase is too high.
I am also shocked at the really, really poor way this change was communicated. They even had to rewrite part of the official info page because people were confused! Even now there are people in this thread who do not understand the changes. There are tech web sites reporting the change in a way that makes it look worse than it is, completely misunderstanding the critical fact that if the server admin has Plex Pass, remote streaming is unlocked. It’s a disaster, and that is 100% Plex’s fault. Ouch. I am glad cleaning it up is not my job. I think misunderstandings are going to linger for ages.
Plex is a big part of my media consumption, I am generally pleased with how it works, and honestly, if I did not have Plex Pass I would probably buy lifetime because of this change. I know I am not the only one. Fine, I am a corporate bootlicker, whatever. Plex knows what they have and they called my bluff. Well played, @elan.
While I’m tolerant of the changes, the fact is that Plex has asked a lot more of us, and they will need to deliver a lot more to us, too. They are blowing up the old apps we have become accustomed to. They are fragmenting video, photos, and music, and it isn’t even clear that we will get all those apps on all platforms. They have rolled out a preview of the new “experience,” and we generally don’t like it.
They have promised that these changes will unlock faster development due to a unified code base. This better be true. If a year from now the new apps are half-assed, if progress is not happening with obviously greater speed than in the past, if the UX is still riddled with inexplicably crummy stuff like the remote access test red/green light, if we don’t have an ironclad commitment to supporting all media on all devices… then Plex will have failed us.
That’s when my personal pitchfork comes out.
YMMV.
Thanks, I’m glad to hear that. I was a bit confused because Plex named other users but not full accounts in your Plex Home.
The remote watch pass is only to allow a remote user to watch remotely if the remote server admin or remote user doesn’t have a Plex Pass.
So if you don’t have a Plex Pass for your server, then each of your remote users will need either their own individual Remote Watch Pass or Plex Pass.
Buying a remote watch pass will not allow remote access to your server for anyone other than yourself.
It can be a little confusing, especially for those where English is not their primary lanuage. Plex really need to produce a flow chart or table to clarify. My effort.
If you want to know whether your can remote access your own server, then you are both the server owner and client user in the table above.
EDIT: Updated chart to clarify circumstances where each individual client user account will require their own pass.
This is a very good point. A new user cannot even test plex really without paying. Less people will recommend plex for selfhosting because of this.
Jellyfin devs do not want more money because they have more than enough right now.
