The Smart TV Alliance will be Introducing an one-stop portal to simplify the app publishing process for smart TVs.
The new common developer portal will go live on May 1, 2014. It will include a Joint Application Developers Agreement and a Premium Developer Support Programe. Currently, app developers need to negotiate a separate developer contract for each individual manufacturer in order to publish content.
The Smart TV Alliance will overcome those inefficiencies with a single developer contract for publishing apps to all of the STA compliant devices.
“The new Common Developer Portal shows Smart TV Alliance apps are market ready for manufacturers, solution providers and consumers on a variety of televisions and devices,” said Seijiro Yasuki, president of Smart TV Alliance and Chief Technology Executive of Digital Products & Services Company, Toshiba.
“It encourages a vibrant smart TV ecosystem and removes the barriers to application development while enhancing the smart TV experience for consumers.”
The new software development kit provides app developers with emulation and app validation for Smart TV Alliance specification v3.0, including updated HTML5 and CSS features, the new device capability API and, based on developer feedback, optional features such as numeric keys, color keys and multi-audio.
The Smart TV Alliance is expanding its coverage to connect smart TVs to the smart home. A smart TV is one of the most intelligent and easy-to-use home appliances, giving it an important role in the smart home.
The Smart TV Alliance Smart Home specification is based on open standards, including WebSocket, JSON, HTML5, and JavaScript, to ensure compatibility with the greatest number of smart home devices worldwide. With smart home features, applications running on a Smart TV Alliance platform can control and interact with connected devices at home to optimise the consumer’s smart TV experience.
“The open standards-based Smart Home specification is a valuable tool that can extend the range of supported devices,” said Simon Jeon, Head of Home Appliances and Air-Conditioning & Energy Solution R&D Center, LG Electronics.
“As WebSocket and JSON are widely used in many areas, developers can easily use those technologies to make smart home-enabled applications.”
In a related development, the Alliance also announced that Shenzhen TCL New Technology has joined the Alliance. TCL is the No. 1 smart TV manufacturer in China and ranks No. 4 worldwide.
