Plex rolls out social features and content ratings, drawing mixed reactions from users

Plex has started rolling out new features, including social connectivity and content ratings, which have led to some fiery debate among its dedicated users. The updates have been met with a mix of enthusiasm and frustration, as users weigh the benefits of new tools against what some perceive as a loss of control over their personal servers.

One of the more contentious additions is the integration of Common Sense Media ratings. This new feature adds detailed, age-based ratings to movies and shows, providing parents with a more granular look at content than traditional ratings systems.

For some users, this is a welcome change. As Reddit user featherwolf, a parent and avid Plex user, put it, they’re “very happy about this.” Their post now has over two hundred comments. The ratings give specifics about a film’s content, noting things like language, violence, or mature themes. “I care way more about violence than swearing, for example,” said user ReverendDizzle, explaining how the new system gives them more information than a generic rating.

User odsquad64 also shared the same sentiment, noting that they already use Common Sense Media to vet content for their children and find the detailed breakdowns helpful, especially for older PG movies that might have content surprising for modern viewers.

However, many users are unhappy that the ratings are not optional. A Plex employee, drzoidberg33, confirmed that the ratings cannot be hidden in the current rollout, which has drawn the ire of users who feel they don’t need the feature. “I honestly don’t get how Jaws wasn’t rated R originally,” said one user, Indubitalist, highlighting that many of the ratings are based on standards from past decades.

Others, like Yellow_Odd_Fellow, pointed out what they saw as the overly puritanical nature of some ratings. “Common sense media says the teenage mutant ninja turtles is not appropriate for childre until they are in middle school!” the user wrote, citing the rating’s notes on language and flirting as proof of the system being too conservative. User omg expressed their disappointment that they “can’t turn it off at all,” while another user, omega-fivethreefive, simply asked, “How do I disable this?”

On a separate front, Plex has also introduced new social features, giving users the ability to manage who can find and friend them and what activity they share. The new “Allow Friend Requests From” and “My Account Visibility” settings allow users to keep their profiles private.

By default, these options are set to allow friends to request access to a user’s watch history, ratings, and reviews. However, the default setting for friend requests is “Nobody.” While this seems like a step toward user control, a Reddit user named lookoutfuture warned others to check their settings, noting that on the mobile app, users can opt-out of friend requests from “any user who visited your profile.” The user added that the setting cannot be changed from a computer, only on the app.

This wasn’t the only privacy setting users were worried about. A user named dellis87 warned users to tweak their TCF vendors setting, which governs data sharing for targeted advertising, that had been automatically switched from “All No” to “Yes” for some vendors.

Several other users confirmed this, with pc-despair stating they had recently changed these settings and found them switched back on. User bigbrother_55 called the practice “unethical,” noting that Plex seems to be systematically opting users in without their permission. “This is absolutely horsesh*t, Plex,” wrote user gurpderp, who reported the same thing happening to them. As user StarStruck3 put it, “I don’t mind the user reviews, but this is too far. Especially when it’s opt out.”

You can check and change your settings by visiting this link: https://www.plex.tv/vendors-us/#tcf-vendors

These two seemingly unrelated updates have some users feeling a similar sense of frustration. Both the new Common Sense Media ratings and the privacy settings for social features are sparking concern that Plex is moving away from its core identity as a user-controlled media server and becoming a more mainstream, ad-driven platform. While some appreciate the new features, the lack of user choice and what many see as questionable privacy practices have left a bitter taste.

But what are your thoughts on this? Let me know in the comments below.