Plex’s $749.99 jump and iPhone soccer reboot this week

Plex’s Lifetime – Plex has raised its Lifetime Plex Pass from $249.99 to $749.99, while Apple pushed iPhone 17 Pro into an MLS broadcast. Epic Games, meanwhile, returned Fortnite to the App Store in most countries with messaging that landed like a threat—sparking a sharper cont

When the news cycle starts sounding like a courtroom drama and an ad campaign in the same breath. you know the week won’t be quiet. Apple kept swinging iPhones at big-screen moments. Epic brought Fortnite back to the App Store in most countries. and Plex delivered a price hike so steep it practically forces consumers to do the math before they feel anything.

The brightest headline came from the most familiar battleground: the long-running Apple vs. Epic Games fight. Fortnite returned to iPhone in the App Store in most countries. bringing the game back to the place it originally helped ignite the dispute. Epic dressed the return up with an Apple-like social media ad, leaning into a big promotional vibe.

But the celebration came with an edge. Australia is excluded from the revival because cases are still being processed in the country. And in Epic’s accompanying press release. the tone shifts abruptly to a promise: “The Final Battle Approaches.” The line is tied to Epic’s view that a U.S. federal court will “force” Apple to be transparent over its App Store fees. Epic also argues regulators around the world “will not allow Apple junk fees to stand. ” and says it will keep challenging Apple’s alleged anticompetitive practices. including banning alternative stores and payment systems.

That contrast—bright and colorful for gamers, stark and corporate in the courtroom sense—lands strangely in the same moment. Epic chief Tim Sweeney has a habit of public posting. and the message reads like it’s trying to have two meanings at once: celebration for the product’s return. and a reminder of what Epic intends to press on in court.

Apple’s own spotlight this week landed on sports, with iPhone 17 Pro. On May 21. Apple announced that the iPhone 17 Pro would play a key role in Apple TV’s coverage of the LA Galaxy vs Houston Dynamo FC MLS game the following Saturday. Apple said all shots from the game would be captured live on the iPhone 17 Pro. including team warmups and scoring goals. The pitch was simple: “dynamic new perspectives that bring viewers closer to the action. ” with Apple leaning on the idea that an iPhone is smaller than a regular camera.

The leap from idea to reality comes with a familiar subtext. Apple TV’s team has experience here—iPhones were used for coverage during Friday Night Baseball in September 2025—and iPhone work has also shown up in feature film production. including the Danny Boyle horror “28 Years Later” using an iPhone 15 Pro Max. For live broadcasts. the BBC used iPhones for livestreams during the 2024 UK General Election. and NBC used two iPhones and an iPad for the “Today Show” during COVID times.

So the MLS use doesn’t feel random. It feels like Apple continuing to sell a future where mobile hardware can step into spaces built for specialized rigs. Still. replacing every camera in a sports broadcast with iPhones is a move that reads as both a technical flex and an advertising play—proof that others can point to when they wonder what their own iPhones could do.

Then comes the moment Plex fans can’t avoid: money, and a lot more of it. On May 19, Plex said it would raise the price of its Lifetime Plex Pass from its current $249.99 to $749.99. That’s an increase of $500.

Plex justified the change by saying it needs to sustain long-term development. The new price. Plex said. “reflects the real. ongoing value of the software we’re committed to building and maintaining for years to come.” On paper. that explanation sounds like it belongs to a long-term roadmap. In practice. it forces the question consumers always end up asking when numbers jump: how long would you have to commit to get your value back?.

The current Plex Pass costs $69.99 per year, ignoring any future price rises that may apply to that plan. With that annual price, a user would have to use Plex for more than ten years under the annual Plex Pass to match the equivalent cost of the Lifetime Plex Pass price after the July 1 rise.

That timeline is tough to hold in a world where software services don’t always survive market forces for a decade. It also places a blunt decision in front of consumers: is this a bet on Plex lasting that long?. Or is it a reminder that the “lifetime” promise can be harder to trust than a plan with an easy exit?.

There’s another angle hidden inside the price jump. Even if someone plans to stay long enough to make Lifetime feel reasonable, the annual option creates flexibility. After five years. a consumer could switch to another platform entirely—saving some $375 in the process from not having to pay Plex more. One example Plex’s price forces people to compare is Jellyfin, which requires some effort and knowledge to set up. Jellyfin is free and open-source, and what you pay with is your own sweat.

Plex may believe it has “good intentions” to keep development going for years to come. But to a consumer staring at $249.99 turning into $749.99, good intentions don’t lower the sticker shock.

This week’s lighter stories still pile up underneath the money and media: last week’s Sunday Reboot covered Liquid Glass getting an award. Tim Cook being taken to China one more time. and Cats and HomeKit—an echo of how the column keeps circling back to Apple’s orbit. even when the fallout spills into lawsuits. broadcasts. and pricing.

Taken together, the week feels like a set of competing signals. Epic sells a Fortnite return to the App Store in most countries. then warns that “The Final Battle Approaches.” Apple shows iPhone 17 Pro stepping into an MLS broadcast as if it’s ready for the main event. And Plex. meanwhile. asks users to accept a Lifetime Plex Pass priced at $749.99—an ask that turns a subscription choice into a long-term bet. whether consumers feel ready to make it or not.

Plex Lifetime Plex Pass $749.99 iPhone 17 Pro Apple TV MLS LA Galaxy vs Houston Dynamo Epic Games Fortnite App Store Australia excluded “The Final Battle Approaches” Apple vs Epic