By Sampath Mallidi, CEO of Revidd · November 2026
A smart TV app for broadcasters is your own branded app on the TV screen, built for platforms like Samsung, LG and Roku. You load your content once, viewers open your icon, and each TV store reviews the app before launch. With Revidd, apps can be ready in as little as 1 to 2 weeks, plus store review.
What is a smart TV app for broadcasters?
A smart TV app is a streaming app that lives on the home screen of a connected TV. Your viewers find it in the Samsung, LG or Roku app store, install it, and watch your channel with a remote.
It is your brand, your logo and your viewers. That is the big difference from posting to someone else's service. The audience that opens your app is an audience you own.
Why does your channel need its own app on the TV?
Because a link on a phone does not reach the living room. Viewers who love your shows still need an easy way to watch them on the TV. An app gives you three things:
A place on the TV home screen that carries only your name.
Control of how your shows, live streams and channels are laid out.
A direct relationship with the people who watch.
If you have only been posting to a video site, read our comparison of an own app versus YouTube for TV channels. It explains what you gain and what you give up.
Own app or a FAST service: which one do you need?
They are two different jobs, and many broadcasters do both. Your own app is a channel in your name. A FAST service is someone else's app that carries your channel next to hundreds of others.
Your own smart TV app | A third party FAST service | |
|---|---|---|
Whose brand is on the screen | Yours | The service's |
Who owns the audience | You | The service |
Where it lives | Samsung, LG, Roku and other app stores | Inside the service's own app |
Who decides if you get in | You, plus the app store review | The service |
What you control | Layout, programming and the viewer relationship | Your channel feed |
Revidd builds the first one. It does not place channels on third party FAST services. If reach on those services is your goal, ask a distribution specialist. Our guide to FAST channel distribution shows where each option fits.
Which smart TV platforms should you launch on?
Start where your viewers already are. For most US broadcasters that means Roku, Samsung, LG, Vizio, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Android TV.
You do not have to build for each one by hand. Revidd gives you native apps on all of them from one integration, plus iPhone, iPad, Android and the web. That adds up to 50+ device endpoints from one integration.
Here is a simple way to choose your first launch:
Check your own website analytics for the devices your viewers use today.
Ask your audience which TV they have. A short survey is enough.
Launch on the platforms that cover most of them, then add the rest.
If you are leading with Roku, our walkthrough on getting your streaming channel on Roku and Apple TV covers that path.
What does it take to launch a smart TV app?
Less than most teams expect, if the platform does the heavy lifting. Here is who does what.
You:
Pick your name, logo, colors and screen layout.
Load your shows, live streams and any 24/7 channels into the CMS.
Decide what is free, what is paid and what needs a login.
Check that your rights cover streaming on TV apps.
Your platform vendor:
Builds the native app for each TV platform.
Submits the app to each store and handles the fixes.
Keeps the apps working as the TV platforms change.
The app store:
Reviews the app and decides when it goes live.
With Revidd, apps can be ready in as little as 1 to 2 weeks. Store review comes on top of that, and Revidd does not control it. Plan for it.
What slows a smart TV app launch down?
Almost never the build. It is usually something on the checklist that was not ready.
Store review. Each TV store has its own timing and its own rules. Submit early.
Artwork. Icons, logos and splash screens need the right sizes. Collect them before you start.
Rights. A broadcast deal does not always cover streaming in an app. Check before you build.
Decisions. Pricing, login and layout choices that nobody owns. Name one person to decide.
Our CTV app store submission checklist walks through what each store asks for. For the full timeline, see how long it takes to launch an OTT app.
When is another route better?
An own app is not always the first move. Be honest about your stage.
You have no library yet. If you do not have programs to show, start by making them. An empty app does not bring viewers back.
You only need reach, fast. If you want your channel in front of the widest audience with the least work, a FAST distribution partner such as Amagi or Wurl is built for that. Revidd does not place channels there.
You need one web page. If a video page on your own site is enough for now, start there and add TV apps when viewers ask for them.
You have an engineering team that wants to build. Some broadcasters prefer to run their own apps. That is a valid choice, but plan for ongoing work as TV platforms change.
Most broadcasters end up with both an own app and a distribution partner. They do not conflict.
How does Revidd fit?
Revidd is a white label OTT and FAST platform for broadcasters. Your smart TV apps come from the same platform that runs your library and live channels.
Native branded apps on Roku, Samsung, LG, Vizio, Apple TV, Fire TV, Android TV, iPhone, iPad, Android and web.
On demand, live and 24/7 FAST channels from one CMS.
50+ device endpoints from one integration.
No in-house engineering needed to launch.
Apps in as little as 1 to 2 weeks, plus app store review.
SCTE-35 markers for your ad partners.
Revidd powers streaming that reaches more than 38 million viewers across 15 countries.
Want to see your channel on a TV screen? For a rough look at costs first, read what an OTT app costs for broadcasters. For the product page, see Revidd OTT apps.
Bring your logo and a few shows, and we will show you the app. Request a demo.
Frequently asked questions
What is a smart TV app for broadcasters?
It is your own branded streaming app on connected TVs such as Samsung, LG and Roku. Viewers install it from the TV's app store and watch your live channel and library on the big screen.
How long does it take to launch a smart TV app?
With Revidd, apps can be ready in as little as 1 to 2 weeks. Each TV store then reviews the app, and that timing is outside Revidd's control. Submit early and have your artwork ready.
Do I need to build a separate app for each TV platform?
Not with a platform that handles it for you. Revidd gives you native apps on Roku, Samsung, LG, Vizio, Apple TV, Fire TV and Android TV from one integration, plus mobile and web.
Does a smart TV app put my channel on Samsung TV Plus or The Roku Channel?
No. Your own app is a channel in your name, found in the TV's app store. Those services are third party FAST distribution, and Revidd does not place channels on them. Ask a distribution specialist if that is your goal.
Can I show live streams and on demand shows in the same app?
Yes. Revidd runs on demand, live and 24/7 FAST channels from one CMS, and they appear together in your app.
Do I need an engineering team to run my TV apps?
No in-house engineering is needed to launch. Your programming team loads content and manages the app layout in the CMS.
Ready to see it on a TV? Request a demo.
