For people to watch together their account must have access to the resources on the Plex server. Rather than giving full access to an outside account or creating an isolated library that will temporarily hold viewing items to share it would be convenient if watch together could generate a code (like adding a TV device to the server) that would temporarily grant an external account access to the specified item that will be watched together.
On the list of accounts being invited there could be a button to add a temporary (x hour) watch together code. If looking to invite multiple people the button could be pressed multiple times for different codes so the watch together will still know when all invited people have arrived.
The code / string can be copied and sent to the invited person outside Plex or Plex could ask for an email address when making the code to send it directly.
You already can share single items (movies, playlists…).
There is however no temporary restriction… the general assumption is that you’re watching stuff together with (close enough) friends, with whom you’re already sharing – or that you can easily unshare if you feel the need to revoke that shared item after watching together.
It would still be helpful to have a method to share something for a period of time to allow a watch together and then have it remove the shared access automatically.
Background for why - the kids are cooped up (for the past year) so one release is to watch items together. I created a couple guest plex accounts that have access to our home Plex server. Depending on the person the content may or may not be an issue (i.e. younger kids shouldn’t give their friends access to the R films). Using Share (as you showed me) I can now limit the resources. I create the watch together (since the kids are using managed user accounts on the server). and invite their managed account plus the external guest. The items are only being shared for the one time watch together since these are classmates or friends; not part of the normal family community.
Yes, I would definitely like to see this feature implemented. Sometimes my daughter’s friends want to watch a choice together, but I don’t want her having access to my full library nor have access all the time. I surely don’t want to go through the hassle of adding and removing each time either. Is there any movement to make this a new option? Send a one-time code or link or even a time-based invite for addresses not currently being shared?
It would be convenient if sending someone a Watch Together invite for a file also automatically shares that file with them (possibly temporarily, as others have suggested) if they don’t already have access to it.
Logically, sending someone a Watch Together invite should imply that I’m trying to share the media with them, whereas right now I have to first explicitly share the media with all the users I’m inviting before sending them invites to the Watch Together session.
