How to build TV Everywhere (TVE) functionality?

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How would a Roku channel developer go about programming TV Everywhere (TVE) functionality where an end-user authenticates themselves as a Cable/Satellite TV customer to access locked content?

  • Perhaps someone can point me to other forum posts on this that I missed in my initial search?

  • Or to any established design patterns / APIs / Git repos for the whole solution or specific pieces?

Here is the basic TVE user flow I’m looking to address…

  1. Add the associated channel on your Roku player.
  2. Open the channel on your Roku player.
  3. Select Activate Your Device. An activation code is displayed.
  4. On your computer or mobile device, go to http://www.mysite.com/activate-roku-channel.
  5. Select your Cable/Satellite TV provider.
  6. Enter your Cable/Satellite TV account username and password.
  7. Click Continue to sign in.
  8. Enter the activation code that is displayed on your TV screen.
  9. Click Submit and an activation message is displayed. You now have access to content that was previously locked.

Any guidance is greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

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A TVE linking flow would be very similar to the rendezvous style linking used in many channels. There are a number of threads here as well as an SDK example and a blog post that talk about the basics of that mechanism.

The main difference with a TVE situation would be that between your step #5 and #6, the user would be redirected to their provider’s website to enter their credentials. For that piece you will probably have to talk to each provider you want your users to be able to authenticate with. They often have requirements about branding and use of their names, logos, etc.

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Thanks much RokuChris! This is exactly what I was aiming to understand.