Web Video: Developer/publisher details

This document covers the following topics:

Overview
Encoding Video for TiVo
Publishing Your RSS Feed
Series name
Episode Name
Optional Fields
TiVo Genres
Sample RSS
Display on a TiVo DVR

Overview

TiVo Series3™, HD, and HD XL DVRs can now subscribe to video podcasts that are published using RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and the H.264 video standard. For any compatible podcast, a TiVo user may get a Season Pass™ (subscribe), download an individual episode, or watch instantly. This page contains instructions on how to publish a video podcast that is compatible with TiVo.

If you already have a video podcast that is compatible with TiVo and you would like to have it included in TiVo’s index of podcasts (found within the TiVo menu at TiVo Central > Video on Demand > Browse web videos), please complete the submission form here.

Validating that your video podcast is TiVo-compatible

If you are already publishing your video podcast via RSS, it may work on TiVo without modifications. The best and easiest way to check is: on a TiVo DVR, go to TiVo Central > Video on Demand > Browse web videos > Custom RSS Feeds, and enter the RSS URL of your podcast. If you are then given options for watching your podcast or downloading it, your video podcast is TiVo-compatible. If your video podcast is not compatible, refer to the guidelines below for making your podcast TiVo-compatible.

Encoding video for TiVo

TiVo DVRs are capable of decoding and playing back video encoded in the H.264 format. Because the televisions and displays attached to a TiVo DVR are generally of HD resolution and size, we recommend recording and encoding video at an appropriately high rate for optimal display.

We have developed encoding profiles for a variety of video encoding packages, including Compressor, Sorenson Squeeze, and Rhozet. We recommend using one of these profiles to ensure that your video will play on a TiVo DVR.

Compressor HD (TiVo)
Compressor SD (TiVo, iPod)
Digital Rapids SD (TiVo, iPod)
Digital Rapids HD (TiVo)
Rhozet HD (TiVo)
Rhozet SD (TiVo, iPod)
Sorenson HD (TiVo)
Sorenson SD (TiVo, iPod)

For each encoding package, we have included two profiles:

An HD profile @ 1280x720 which is optimized for TiVo HD display.
An SD profile @ 640x360 which is compatible with TiVo, and is known to be generally compatible with Apple^® iPod^® and iPhone.

Publishing your RSS feed

We recommend that publishers adhere to the RSS 2.0 specification, which may be found at: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/rss/rss.html

In addition, TiVo will recognize many podcasts that conform to Apple^® iTunes specifications, which may be found at: http://www.apple.com/itunes/whatson/podcasts/specs.html#rss

TiVo will recognize both the name of your feed (or “channel” or “series” if you like) as well as individual episodes that are part of your feed, and will display them within the TiVo user interface just like a TV series and individual episodes of that TV series, as long as the metadata is authored properly.

If your feed is included within our channel/series directory (found from TiVo Central > Video on Demand > Browse web videos) your RSS feed will also be available within TiVo Search. To submit your feed for indexing in the TiVo directory, please go to the submission page.

Even if your feed is not included, any TiVo subscriber may access your feed on TiVo by going to TiVo Central > Video on Demand > Browse web videos > Custom RSS feeds and entering the URL directly. You may wish to have a short URL for easy access to the feed.

Series name (`<Channel>`)

TiVo requires the following fields in order to recognize your RSS feed.

RSS 2.0 Tags	Visible on TiVo as
`<title>`	Series title
`<link>`	Not visible
`<image>`OR`<itunes:image>`	Image associated with the series
`<description>`OR`<itunes:summary>`	General series description

Episode name (`<Item>`)

TiVo requires the following fields in order to recognize your RSS feed.

RSS 2.0 Tags	Visible on TiVo as
`<title>`	Series title
`<pubdate>`	Date published
`<guid>`	Not visible — video will be downloaded from this URL
`<description>`OR`<itunes:summary>`	General series description

Optional fields

The following fields are optional but may be recognized by TiVo and displayed when appropriately formatted, space-permitting. By submitting these additional fields, you can improve the indexing and categorization of your content within TiVo Search.

RSS 2.0 Tags	Visible on TiVo as
`<media:rating>`	Self-administered TV rating. The following are valid codes and their definitions: TV - Y7 Directed to older children TV - Y All children TV - G General audience TV - PG Parental guidance suggested TV - 14 Parents strongly cautioned TV - MA Mature audience only TV - NR Not rated
`<media:credit role=”actor”>`	Actor(s) in a given episode/item. Up to 5 may be displayed on TiVo given space constraints.
`<media:credit role=”director”>`	Director of a given episode/item.
`<media:copyright>`	Copyright information
`<media:category>`	Genre category of a particular series or episode.
`<media:category scheme= ”tivogenres”>`	TiVo-specific genres and sub-genres that may be applied to a particular series or episode. Up to 5 may be displayed on TiVo given space constraints. See below for a list of TiVo-indexed genres. By using the TiVo-specific genres, you can improve how your content is indexed against TV shows and movies on TiVo.

TiVo genres

This is the complete list of TiVo-recognized genres. By identifying your content with one or more of these genres, you can help TiVo properly index and identify your content for search and browsing purposes.

Genres

Action Adventure
Adult
Aerobics
Agriculture
Animals
Animated
Anime
Anthology
Archery
Arm Wrestling
Arts and Crafts
Auction
Auto
Auto Racing
Aviation
Award Show
Badminton
Ballet
Baseball
Basketball
Beach Soccer
Beach Volleyball
Biathlon
Bicycle Racing
Bicycling
Billiards
Biography
Blackjack
Boating
Boat Racing
Bobsledding
Bodybuilding
Bowling
Boxing
Bullfighting
Business and Finance
Canoeing
Card Games
Cheerleading
Children

Christmas
Cinco de Mayo
Collectibles
Comedy
Community
Computers
Cooking
Cricket
Crime
Crime Drama
Curling
Dance
Darts
Debate
Docudrama
Documentary
Dog Racing
Dog Show
Drag Racing
Drama
Easter
Educational
Entertainment
Environment
Equestrian
Extreme
Fantasy
Fashion
Fencing
Field Hockey
Figure Skating
Fine Arts
Fishing
Football
Fourth of July
French
Fundraiser
Gaelic Football
Game Show
Gay and Lesbian

Golf
Gymnastics
Halloween
Handball
Hanukkah
Health and Fitness
Historical Drama
History
Hockey
Holiday
Home and Garden
Home Improvement
Horror
Horse Racing
How To
Hunting
Hurling
Hydroplane Racing
Indoor Soccer
International Soccer
Interview
Jai-Alai
Kayaking
Kwanzaa
Lacrosse
Law
Luge
Martial Arts
Medical
Motorcycle Racing
Motorcycles
Motor Sport
Mountain Biking
Music
Musical
Mystery
Nature
News
News Magazine
New Year's

Olympics
Opera
Outdoors
Parade
Paranormal
Parenting
Performing Arts
Playoff Sports
Poker
Politics
Polo
Pool
Pro Wrestling
Public Affairs
Racquetball
Reality
Religion
Ringuette
Rodeo
Roller Derby
Romance
Romantic Comedy
Rowing
Rugby
Running
Sailing
Science
Science Fiction
Self Improvement
Shooting
Shopping
Sitcom
Skateboarding
Skating
Skeleton
Sled Dogs
Snooker
Snowboarding
Snowmobilingv
Snow Skiing

Soap Opera
Soccer
Softball
Spanish
Special
Speed Skating
Sports Event
Sports Non-Event
Sports Talk
Squash
Standup
St. Patrick's Day
Sumo Wrestling
Surfing
Suspense
Swimming and Diving
Table Tennis
Talk Show
Tennis
Thanksgiving
Theater
Track and Field
Travel
Triathlon
Valentine's Day
Variety
Volleyball
War
Water Polo
Water Skiing
Water Sports
Weather
Weightlifting
Western
Wrestling
Yacht Racing

Note: TiVo does occasionally add new genres to the list.

Sample RSS

Here is a sample of an RSS feed that works on TiVo. Tags that are not referenced above that are found in the body below should be ignored.

Custom RSS code

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/includes/podcast/rss2enclosuresfull.xsl" type="text/xsl" media="screen"?>
<?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/includes/podcast/itemcontent.css" type="text/css" media="screen"?>
<rss xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:creativeCommons="http://backend.userland.com/creativeCommonsRssModule" version="2.0">
 <channel>
   <title>President Obama's Weekly Address</title>
   <link>http://www.whitehouse.gov/rss/speeches.xml</link>
   <description>President Obama's Weekly Address</description>
   <language>en-US</language>
   <lastBuildDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 17:45:04 -0500</lastBuildDate>
   <generator>White House http://www.whitehouse.gov/</generator>
   <convertLineBreaks xmlns="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#">true</convertLineBreaks>
   <copyright>Public Domain</copyright>
   <itunes:category text="Government & Organizations" />
   <itunes:explicit> No</itunes:explicit>
   <itunes:summary>Stay in tune with the President's agenda with his weekly addresses released at the end of every week.</itunes:summary>
   <itunes:subtitle>Stay in tune with the President's agenda with his weekly addresses released at the end of every week.</itunes:subtitle>
   <itunes:author>The White House</itunes:author>
   <itunes:owner>
     <itunes:email>noreply@whitehouse.gov</itunes:email>
     <itunes:name>The White House</itunes:name>
   </itunes:owner>
   <itunes:image href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/itunes_thumbnails/iT_weekly_address_video.jpg" />
   <itunes:keywords>president obama weekly address radio video fireside chat</itunes:keywords>
   <creativeCommons:license> http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/</creativeCommons:license>
   <image>
     <link>http://www.whitehouse.gov/rss/speeches.xml</link>
     <url>http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/itunes_thumbnails/iT_weekly_address_video.jpg</url>
     <title>WhiteHouse.gov</title>
   </image>
    <atom:link xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" rel="self" href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/rss/speeches.xml" type="application/rss+xml" />
     <item>
       <title>Recovery and the Jobs of the Future</title>
       <link>http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090711-OQWAZV/20090711_Weekly_Address.m4v</link>
       <author>noreply@whitehouse.gov</author>
       <pubDate>Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:01:00 -0500</pubDate>
       <description>The President explains how the Recovery Act helped end our economic free fall, and how his agenda is helping to set a new foundation for our economy. From health reform, to energy, to creating the jobs of the future, the President’s proposals will make our economy stronger for both the current generations and our children, all in a way that will get our deficits under control.  July 10, 2009.  (Public Domain)</description>
       <enclosure url="http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090711-OQWAZV/20090711_Weekly_Address.m4v" length="54840524" type="audio/mpeg" />
       <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/
       20090711-OQWAZV/20090711_Weekly_Address.m4v</guid>
       <media:content url="http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090711-OQWAZV/20090711_Weekly_Address.m4v" fileSize="54840524" type="audio/mpeg">
         <media:rating>nonadult</media:rating>
       </media:content>
       <itunes:explicit>No</itunes:explicit>
       <itunes:subtitle>The President explains how the Recovery Act helped end our economic free fall, and how his agenda is helping to set a new foundation for our economy</itunes:subtitle>
       <itunes:author>The White House </itunes:author>
       <itunes:summary>The President explains how the Recovery Act helped end our economic free fall, and how his agenda is helping to set a new foundation for our economy</itunes:summary>
       <itunes:keywords>Your Weekly Address, President Barack Obama, Economy, Jobs of the Future, Health Care Reform, Energy,  Green, White House</itunes:keywords>
     </item>
     <item>
       <title>On the 4th of July, Overcoming America’s Challenges</title>
       <link>http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090704-UTEKWJ/20090704_Weekly_Address.m4v</link>
       <author>noreply@whitehouse.gov</author>
       <pubDate>Sat, 4 Jul 2009 00:01:00 -0500</pubDate>
       <description>The President recounts America’s great history of overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges, and pledges to lead America in continuing that tradition.  Focusing on creating a clean energy economy comprehensive health reform, and an education system in need of change, the President pledges not to leave these decades-old problems to yet another generation to solve.  July 3, 2009.  (Public Domain)</description>
       <enclosure url="http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090704-UTEKWJ/20090704_Weekly_Address.m4v" length="29884416" type="audio/mpeg" />
       <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/
       20090704-UTEKWJ/20090704_Weekly_Address.m4v</guid>
       <media:content url="http://www.whitehouse.gov/WeeklyAddress/2009/20090704-UTEKWJ/20090704_Weekly_Address.m4v" fileSize="29884416" type="audio/mpeg">
         <media:rating>nonadult</media:rating>
       </media:content>
       <itunes:explicit>No</itunes:explicit>
       <itunes:subtitle>The President recounts America’s great history of overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges, and pledges to lead America in continuing that tradition.</itunes:subtitle>
       <itunes:author>The White House</itunes:author>
       <itunes:summary>The President recounts America’s great history of overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges, and pledges to lead America in continuing that tradition.</itunes:summary>
       <itunes:keywords>President Barack Obama, White House, Clean Energy Economy, Health Care Reform. Weekly Address, Fourth, 4th, July</itunes:keywords>
     </item>
 </channel>
 </rss>

Display on a TiVo DVR

Here is an example of how metadata submitted via RSS is displayed within the TiVo user interface.

Display on a TiVo DVR

Web Video: Developer/publisher details

Overview

Validating that your video podcast is TiVo-compatible

Encoding video for TiVo

Publishing your RSS feed

Series name (<Channel>)

Episode name (<Item>)

Optional fields

TiVo genres

Sample RSS

Display on a TiVo DVR

Series name (`<Channel>`)

Episode name (`<Item>`)