1page.title=Building Live TV Apps
2page.tags=tv, tif
3helpoutsWidget=true
4page.article=true
5
6@jd:body
7
8<div id="tb-wrapper">
9<div id="tb">
10  <h2>You should also read</h2>
11  <ul>
12    <li><a href="{@docRoot}reference/android/media/tv/package-summary.html">
13      android.media.tv</a></li>
14  </ul>
15</div>
16</div>
17
18<p>
19  Watching live television shows and other continuous, channel-based content is a big part of the
20  TV experience. Android supports receiving and playback of live video content through the TV Input
21  Framework in Android 5.0 (API level 21).
22  This framework provides a unified method for receiving audio and video channel content
23  from hardware sources, such as HDMI ports and built-in-tuners, and software sources, such as
24  video streamed over the internet.
25</p>
26<p>
27  The framework enables developers to define live TV input sources by implementing a TV input
28  service. This service publishes a list of channels and programs to the TV Provider. The live TV
29  app on a TV device gets the list of available channels and programs from the TV Provider and
30  displays them to a user. When a user selects a specific channel, the live TV app creates a
31  session for the associated TV input service through the TV Input Manager, and tells the TV input
32  service to tune to the requested channel and play the content to a display surface provided by
33  the TV app.
34</p>
35
36<img src="{@docRoot}images/tv/tv-tif-overview.png" id="figure1">
37<p class="img-caption">
38  <strong>Figure 1.</strong> Functional diagram of the TV Input Framework
39</p>
40
41<p>
42  The TV Input Framework is designed to provide access to a wide variety of live TV input sources
43  and bring them together in a single user interface for users to browse, view, and enjoy content.
44  Building a TV input service for your content can help make it more accessible on TV devices.
45</p>
46
47<p>For more information about TV Input Framework, see the
48<a href="{@docRoot}reference/android/media/tv/package-summary.html">android.media.tv</a>
49reference.</p>
50