Plex is bringing its media streaming content service to Apple's upcoming set-top box through a dedicated app.
Currently, users have to stream their content to the Apple TV using a different app during AirPlay. The only way to gain native access to a Plex client is by jailbreaking.
If the announcement pushes through, it would mean that users will no longer have to perform a jailbreak or look for a smart workaround in order to access Plex.
"The future of television is apps. We second that! Anxiously awaiting @APPLEOFFICIAL tvOS developer beta info! Who wants Plex on Apple TV??," said Plex on a post at Twitter.
"The future of television is apps." We second that! Anxiously awaiting @APPLEOFFIClAL tvOS developer beta info! Who wants Plex on Apple TV??
— Plex (@plexapp) September 9, 2015
In 2013, Plex announced PlexConnect, the company's response to the demand to make the previously released Plex client to work with full functionality on Apple TV with devices that were not jailbroken.
"It's a super clever little hack which allows a rich, fully-functional Plex client on un-jailbroken ATV2 and ATV3 (1080p!) devices. Essentially, you run a program on your computer which masquerades as the Trailer app. Next, change one setting on the ATV, and you're up and running," said Plex.
Plex had so far been unable to give information on specific details or timeframes. Scott Olechowski, the co-founder of Plex, felt grateful that Apple is using the familiar API frameworks found in the iPhone and iPad. The move certainly helped reduce the needed work in porting the app from iOS into tvOS.
"We are very excited to have a crack at bringing our users Apple TV. It's been a long requested platform and we're excited to work on it. We want it, our users want it...and we're anxiously awaiting the tvOS developer beta info, so we can finally dig in," said Olechowski.
The new Apple TV is scheduled to release in late October 2015. It will have two models: the 32GB and the 64GB and will cost $149 and $199 respectively.
Whichever model the user chooses, he should be able to install the Plex app fairly easily. As the launch of Apple TV draws nearer, users can simply continue AirPlaying media content using other devices or a separate media server. Lastly, users should be glad to know that the upcoming Apple TV supports Home Sharing, which means that they can stream content directly from iTunes to PCs that are connected in the network.
