Plex, meanwhile, aims to be “the place where people can discover what they’re watching, no matter where that content lives,” Scott Olechowski, Plex’s co-founder and chief product officer, said in a statement.
Content discovery is an oft-cited challenge in the streaming industry, with various players including smart TV OS operators, streaming service providers, and generative AI chatbots trying to crack it. If Plex could use its user data to drive valuable recommendations, monetizing their content discovery could prove lucrative.
“For studios and advertisers, we’re also creating a more measurable path from discovery to purchase to help marketers understand which campaigns are converting,” said Olechowski.
The Plex Fandango partnership contrasts with its media server business, which allows users to share movies they own with friends and family without paying Hollywood licensing fees.
The foray into movie ticket sales comes over two and a half years after Plex launched its streaming service where people can rent movies. Plex also launched a free ad-supported television (FAST) streaming service and added social media capabilities to its platform.
These ventures give Plex additional revenue streams via its media server software. As it stands, the businesses coexist peacefully: someone who only wants to use Plex for media hosting doesn’t have to use Plex’s on-demand streaming services. They can also opt out of some of Plex’s data sharing options. (In particular, Plex says it collects data from media server users “searching on Plex.”)
On the media-hosting side, Plex discussed challenges in making life through financial sustainability. Its new businesses can help finance advancements and/or maintenance of Plex’s media software. At the same time, the company seems largely focused on expanding the non-server software aspects of its business.