Smart TV app development is constantly evolving, shaped by technological advancements, regulatory changes, and shifting viewer expectations. While trends in UX and content delivery continue to change, some long-term industry developments are expected to have a lasting impact on how Smart TV applications are built and distributed.
Accountability and ethical developments
There are three big areas which balance innovation with responsibility toward users, communities, and resources, these are:
Sustainability in SmartTV context is mainly regarding the content and application delivery from the origin servers to the masses, concentrating achieving the lowest latency possible while consuming the least power. Watch especially new company driven initiatives like Greening of Streaming at https://www.greeningofstreaming.org/. It strives to minimize environmental impacts of the streaming industry through innovative engineering, education and collaboration.
Accessibility as mandated by the EU directive, the European Accessibilty Act (EAA), have already driven the standardization efforts across all platforms not only in the EU but globally. SmartTV apps and content must take these requirements into account. For example in subtitling a new expert-driven group CCSUBS was recently formed to push for even better experience across the globe regarding closed captioning and subtitles. Sofia Digital is also doing its part by providing a few TTML Live DASH streams for interoperability testing and compatibility.
Content provenance and authenticity efforts are gaining traction to fight the on-going battle against disinformation, deepfakes and other falsified content across all media platforms, including OTT and TV content accessible through SmartTV applications. Content provenance standards provide an open and trusted platform to identify the origin and history of the content. Through the membership of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, virtually every major stakeholder in the streaming business is committed to fight against fake content, highlighting the importance of this effort.
Hybrid Broadcast-Broadband Solutions (DVB-I and Beyond)
One of the most significant shifts in the industry is the integration of broadcast and broadband technologies. Standards like DVB-I, HbbTV, DVB-NIP and ATSC 3.0 aim to bridge the gap between traditional linear TV and IP-based content delivery, creating a more unified experience for users. Some are saying that DVB-I and related developments are the last chance saloon to keep traditional commercial and public broadcasting model relevant and alive.
- DVB-I enables traditional TV channels to be signaled over broadband, maintaining the structured experience of linear television while providing the flexibility of streaming.
- Operators and broadcasters benefit from a more efficient distribution model, reducing reliance on traditional broadcast signaling. At the same time, DVB-I offers the opportunity to maintain the current channel list-based access to applications and services, and not yielding to portal-based Smart TV gatekeeper-controlled approach
- For Smart TV app developers, this means new opportunities for interactive services, better metadata handling, and enhanced personalization.
📌 More on DVB-I and Smart TV app integration: Sofia Digital’s DVB-I Service Manager
Efforts Toward Standardization
One of the biggest challenges in Smart TV app development has always been platform fragmentation. Industry groups are increasingly pushing for standardized development frameworks to make apps more compatible across different ecosystems.
- Common Media Application Format (CMAF) is helping unify video streaming protocols, making it easier to deliver low-latency, high-quality content across platforms.
- WebAssembly (WASM) enables SmartTV applications a more direct access to native hardware capabilities of the TV in a standardized manner
- Common Media Client Data (CMCD) is a standard in player and CDN implementations, and now also the latest DASH IF Player v5 implements it. CMCD helps in analytics, debugging, delivery optimization, alerting and monitoring systems, low-latency, and more. Together with Common Media Server Data it makes data-based decision making available at every step in streaming systems.
- HbbTV continues to evolve, it is improving interactive and hybrid TV services development while ensuring compatibility with Smart TVs worldwide, providing direct broadcast and linear TV access to interactive services.
AI, Automation and Personalization in Smart TV UX
AI is already shaping how Smart TV apps recommend and present content. While not a new concept, AI-driven improvements in UX, accessibility, and content discovery are becoming more practical and widely adopted.
- AI-powered content recommendations help streaming services increase engagement by analyzing viewing habits and user preferences.
- Voice control and natural language processing (NLP) are improving search and navigation, making Smart TV interactions more intuitive.
- AI-assisted accessibility features (such as automatic subtitle generation and text-to-speech) are enhancing inclusivity.
- Smart TVs are increasingly integrating automation assistants and interactive elements, expanding how users interact with content.
- Support for Alexa, Google Assistant, and Bixby is becoming standard in many Smart TV platforms.
- Real-time interactions are emerging, allowing users to engage with live events, sports, and entertainment
- Matter, a new standard for smart home and iot connectivity standard is making its way to smart tv platforms as well
Adapting to an Evolving Landscape
Smart TV app development is no longer just about building an app that works today—it’s about preparing for future shifts in how content is delivered, discovered, and consumed. Whether through hybrid TV solutions like DVB-I, standardization efforts, or AI-driven UX improvements, businesses that stay ahead of these developments will be better positioned to adapt and compete in the evolving Smart TV ecosystem.
Want to know more about Smart TV development?
Sofia Digital excels in Smart TV app development across all major platforms, including Tizen, webOS, VIDAA and Android TV. Our approach goes beyond coding; we act as a strategic business partner, offering flexible, customized business models to bring maximum value to our clients.Â
