How Tizen apps are built
Tizen TV apps are web applications: HTML, CSS and JavaScript packaged for the television and run in its built-in browser engine. Samsung supplies the development tools and television-specific interfaces for playback, remote-control input and device information.
Video is played through Samsung's native player interface, which handles adaptive streaming and DRM in hardware.
What a Tizen streaming app needs
- Navigation designed entirely for the remote control's arrow, enter and back keys
- Playback using the platform player, with PlayReady or Widevine for protected content
- Support for several model years, each with a different browser engine version
- Performance tuned for television hardware, which is far slower than a phone
- Sign-in by code or QR, to avoid typing on screen
Publishing
Apps are submitted through Samsung's seller portal for televisions and tested by Samsung against its guidelines before release. Review is more involved than on mobile stores and is done on real hardware, so allow extra time, especially for a first submission.
Why services target Tizen
Samsung has been the largest television maker by sales for many years, so Tizen is one of the most widely installed TV platforms in the world. In many markets a service cannot claim to be on smart TVs without it.
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