Media player software company Plex has launched a free-to-use, ad-supported video streaming service featuring a large selection of older movies and TV shows that it says are available to watch worldwide. 

The service is similar to platforms such as The Roku Channel, Tubi and IMDb TV, in that viewers will be forced to endure advertisements both before they start watching, and at regular intervals throughout. The main difference with Plex’s service is it’s available in more than 200 countries and regions, making it the world’s largest ad-supported video service in terms of reach. 

"While there are certainly other free streaming services out there, we’re the first to offer a vast, free, diverse collection of content for a truly global audience,” Plex said in a statement. “Starting today, Plex will deliver more content to more countries than any other free streaming service to date. We wanted to offer more entertainment—both classics and new favorites—and do so in a way that is high-quality (for those who care about encoding quality) while serving only about one-third the amount of ads you’d expect on cable television.” 

Plex said it has signed deals with Hollywood studios including Lionsgate, MGM and Warner Bros. 

Besides being bombarded with ads, users will also have to give up their viewing data, which will inevitably be sold to more advertising companies. Still, Plex insisted that its partners will not have “any access or visibility into the content or metadata that our users have in their personal media collection.” 

Plex said its content can be streamed at up to 1080p, and will have “1000’s of free movies” available at launch. 

Launch titles include classics such as Rain Man, The Terminator, Apocalypse Now, Raging Bull and Lord of War. However, FlatPanelsHD notes that many of those titles are unavailable to watch outside of the U.S., calling into question its claims of “worldwide availability”. 

Those willing to put up with the ads can try out Plex’s new streaming service at plex.tv, or else access it via the Plex app on Apple TV, Fire TV, PlayStation, Roku and Xbox.