Remote Controls Reference (tvOS)

The JWPlayerTVKit for tvOS has implemented user controls for the Apple Remote. These controls are only available when subclassing JWCinematicViewController. These controls are optimized for the Siri Remote (1st Generation) and Siri Remote (2nd Generation).

The following section explains each user control.

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References to buttons names and controls use Apple's terminology.

Video Play/Pause

A viewer can toggle play/pause by using the Play/Pause button. This works in all states of the player. When this button is pressed, the controls appear on the screen. If content is playing, the controls disappear after several seconds. If content is paused, the controls will remain on the screen until dismissed using the touchpad.

Show or Dismiss Controls

A soft-touch on the touchpad changes the information displayed to the user. If is playing, the order of events from successive touches performs the following:

1st touch: Scrub bar and information panels appear
2nd touch: Time on the scrub bar will show the time the video will end
3rd touch: Controls dismissed

After being displayed, the controls disappear after several seconds if content is playing. If content is paused or the viewer is in the information panels at the bottom of the screen, the controls remain on the screen until dismissed.

Skipping Forward or Backward

Pressing the left button on the remote controls rewinds the video by 10 seconds. Pressing the right button on the remote control fast forwards the video by 10 seconds.

Playback Rate

Double-clicking the left button on the remote control decreases the speed of playback. Double-clicking the right button increases the rate of playback.

Both of these actions only cycle through available playback rates set in the JWCinematicViewController. To prevent a viewer from adjusting the rate of playback, set playbackRates to a single value of [1.0].

Seeking

When the viewer has paused playback and focused on the scrub bar, the touchpad or left and right buttons can be used to seek over the video. Selecting a spot on the scrub bar by clicking on the touchpad resumes playback from the point in the video chosen.

Toggle Letterbox Format

The viewer can switch the format of the video between letterbox and fill by double-soft-touching the touchpad.