News
Wasn't streaming entertainment much easier when Netflix first pioneered the idea? It had a host of new and classic content to stream on demand, to any device, at any time. It felt like the future, and in many ways it was.
However, the 2026 streaming experience is much more frustrating. Movies and shows are now siloed across a multitude of platforms, run by the likes of Apple, Amazon, HBO, and Disney, as well as Netflix. The cost of keeping up keeps on rising, and even if you sign up to multiple subscriptions, there's no guarantee of finding everything you want.
I had a bit of an epiphany a few weeks ago, when I realized the number of streaming subscriptions I had was into double figures — and I still couldn't find anything I wanted to watch. The dishes the algorithms were serving up weren't particularly appealing, and I was wasting money on services I wasn't using.
With that in mind, I decided to hit cancel on a few of these streaming apps, and go back to Plex: while it does offer a streaming component, it also lets you stream local media across your devices, so you can put together your own Netflix — without necessarily having to pay for another subscription.
How Plex worksPlex runs on a freemium model (Image credit: Plex / Future)Open the Plex website today, and the service looks a lot like other FAST (free ad-supported streaming television) services, such as Pluto TV or Tubi. You can tune into plenty of shows and movies for free, but if you look closely there's also a My Media section that you can use to build a library from your own files.
Plex can work with video, but also audio and photos. You set up a Windows or macOS computer as a server where all your media lives, and then the software takes care of streaming it to other laptops, desktops, tablets, consoles, and phones. There's a Plex app for just about every device out there, including Android phones and iPhones.
Streaming content around your home is free, and that's enough for me. If you want to watch something remotely while you're away, that's where the subscriptions come into play. They start at $2.99 / £2.99 / AU$4 a month for a single user streaming content over the internet, and go up from there if you need more features (like offline downloads).
Clearly this means you need to have your movies and TV shows in digital form — which is the case with me after years of buying DVDs and Blu-rays. There is some legal uncertainty around ripping these discs, but personally I've got no qualms about creating backups of movies and shows that I've paid good money for, so that I can watch them on my own on more devices more easily.
Getting back into PlexSometimes the old shows are the best (Image credit: Plex / Future)I was a serious Plex user years ago, but haven't opened the app for quite some time: so I was faced with having to find my old media library again, remember my Plex username and password, and get everything set up properly as it was before. Thankfully, my movie and show files were still lurking on my main PC, ready to be used.
Google Password Manager remembered my Plex login details, so it was then a case of downloading the Windows server client and crossing my fingers. On Windows and macOS, the bulk of the app's operations are handled in a browser tab, and I was left waiting for several minutes before I was met with an authentication error. However, after a quick restart, I was back up and running.
(Image credit: Future)Understandably, Plex hadn't remembered my media library library settings from my last login (which I think was on an entirely different PC), so I had to point it towards the relevant folders on my system again. However, once this was done, the scanning took less time than I expected, and my films and shows soon popped up, ready to be accessed.
There were plenty of old favorites that I haven't watched in years that I was keen to revisit, all free from adverts and subscription fees, and available to any device in any room — you can simply carry on watching where you left off as you jump between devices. Getting back up and running was thankfully very straightforward indeed.
Plex vs the restIt's like Netflix — but you can customize everything (Image credit: Plex / Future)I'm happier now with my more Plex-centric setup, but there are pros and cons to it. You need to have your own media, and buying a DVD or Blu-ray can cost as much as a month of Netflix — so it's not always going to save you money, depending on how much new stuff you want to watch. A lot of shows made for streaming won't be available on physical media either, though some are (including Severance and Stranger Things).
What Plex does protect you against is shows or movies suddenly disappearing from digital stores and streaming services. Once you've bought something, you've got it for good. All the big streaming platforms have a rotating library of content that changes month to month, but that's not something you need to worry about with Plex.
Another big advantage is how much customization you get. Whether you want to change the thumbnails used for library titles, or adjust the threshold beyond which a movie stays in your 'continue watching' row, Plex lets you personalize your viewing experience in a host of ways. It's a library that you've actually got control over.
It's fair to say it's not for everyone, and setting Plex up from scratch takes significantly more time and effort than I put in going back to it — you need to do a lot more in the way of media organizing and tagging when you first get started, to get everything just right. However, having mostly abandoned Plex, I'm now glad to have it back amidst the rising prices and changing catalogs that come with the big streaming apps.
- Verizon signs $1 billion dark fiber data center connectivity deal with Google
- The telecoms company plans to use its fiber assets to connect AI data centers across the US
- Fiber network growth is replacing copper lines and activating previously unused dark fiber lines
Verizon has completed a $1 billion deal with Google to provide data center connectivity using pre-existing dark fiber infrastructure. The move appears to be the first of several arrangements to leverage dark fiber and the desire for AI data centers to collaborate on compute tasks.
CEO Dan Schulman highlighted how copper is being ripped out of central offices to replace the outdated cabling with modern fiber to meet AI demand in workplaces. Verizon previously announced its AI Connect initiative, which aims to support AI infrastructure growth, and the Google deal appears to be the first step in that initiative.
Verizon expects its AI Connect deals to grow over the next decade.
Verizon’s renewed momentumVerizon has made some strong moves in the past few months, completing the $20 billion purchase of Frontier Communications earlier in 2026, giving it an expanded fiber footprint across 31 states (up from 15), as well as Washington, DC.
Meanwhile, the company has also been experimenting with trials to support smaller AI-driven businesses, such as autonomous robotaxi fleets, where Schulman reported (during an earnings call) the company “sold out capability in 24 hours. So we’re seeing a large demand for that as well.”
Focusing on its existing dark fiber infrastructure, some of which was installed in the 1990s and early 2000s, allows Verizon to focus on deals with Google and other AI companies and reduce capital outlays.
Much of the dark fiber has remained largely untapped for years, ending up within Verizon’s portfolio as the result of acquisitions such as the MCI buyout in 2006.
Is a turnaround on the Verizon?Verizon has undergone a transformation under Schulman, one that could put it in a strong position against T-Mobile and AT&T.
New Street Research’s David Barden observed that Verizon’s recent moves and Q2 results are “adding incremental pressure on T-Mobile and AT&T to defend share rather than take it. It also may suggest that cable's wireless push and cable's own broadband churn is where the next leg of competitive pressure is coming from.”
Beyond the churn of domestic and commercial mobile and broadband, Verizon’s strategy to support the growth of AI data centers seems to be a strong bet.
With more installations being approved and coming online with almost weekly regularity, the $1 billion Google deal would seem to be the first of many, with Verizon in a position to potentially dominate direct fiber links between AI data centers.