Launching a streaming service on web and mobile but your content isn't on the living room TV where your audience actually wants to watch it?
Building connected TV apps but finding that each platform (Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, Android TV) has completely different development requirements, SDKs, and certification processes?
OTT Platform Development Company
Your content on the living room TV -- connected TV apps for Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, and Android TV, backed by the subscription management, DRM, and video delivery infrastructure that a media business actually needs.
We build custom OTT platforms for media companies and content networks that need a first-class TV presence, not a workaround built on a third-party platform.
Native apps for Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, and Android TV
DRM content protection across all platforms
SVOD, AVOD, and TVOD monetisation models
Video ingest, transcoding, and CDN delivery
An OTT platform gives media companies a direct presence on the living room TV -- Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Samsung Tizen, and LG webOS -- with subscription management, DRM content protection, and ad-supported monetisation built in. RaftLabs builds custom OTT apps and the backend infrastructure that powers them, including video ingest, HLS/DASH delivery, and viewership analytics. Most OTT platform builds deliver in 14 to 20 weeks at a fixed cost.
100+Products shipped
·Multi-platformTV apps
·FixedCost delivery
·14-20Week delivery
The living room is a separate engineering problem
Web and mobile streaming are table stakes. Connected TV is where viewing hours are concentrated, and it is a fundamentally different engineering target. Roku uses BrightScript and SceneGraph. Apple TV runs tvOS with SwiftUI. Fire TV is Android under the hood but ships its own store and certification process. Android TV uses the Leanback library with Google's own submission requirements. Each platform has its own UI conventions, remote control navigation model, subscription API, and app store review team.
A media business that ignores connected TV is handing audience time to competitors who are already there. But treating OTT development as a single project -- rather than four separate platform engineering tracks with a shared backend -- is how budgets overrun and timelines slip.
We scope OTT builds as a platform engineering program: shared backend for video delivery, subscription management, and rights enforcement, with native apps built to the specification of each connected TV platform. The result is a TV presence that passes certification on the first or second submission and performs consistently across all four major platforms.
What we build
Roku channel development
Roku SceneGraph and BrightScript development for channels that require custom UI beyond what Roku Direct Publisher offers. Grid layouts, detail pages, search, and deep-link support built to Roku's 10-foot interface conventions. Roku Pay integration for subscription and pay-per-view purchases. Custom authentication flows for platforms with existing subscriber accounts. Submission to the Roku Channel Store with certification guidance so the review process does not stall on avoidable rejections. Roku Direct Publisher configuration for simpler catalogue channels that do not require a fully coded app.
Apple TV (tvOS) app
Native tvOS app built with SwiftUI or UIKit, depending on your minimum OS target. Top shelf extension for featured content that surfaces in the Apple TV home screen when your app is selected. Siri remote navigation with proper focus engine implementation -- the most common source of Apple TV App Store rejections for apps that come to us after a failed first submission. Apple Pay for subscriptions with shared subscription state via StoreKit so iOS and tvOS users share the same entitlement. App Store submission and review process managed by our team, including the TestFlight distribution phase.
Amazon Fire TV and Android TV
Android-based development for both Fire TV and Android TV/Google TV using the Leanback library for TV-optimised navigation. Amazon Appstore submission and certification, including the Fire TV certification checklist that catches common failures before submission. Google Play for Android TV with the separate TV app review track. In-app purchases and subscriptions via Amazon In-App Purchasing and Google Play Billing respectively. Voice search integration with Alexa on Fire TV and Google Assistant on Android TV so your content is discoverable via voice commands, not just remote navigation.
DRM and content protection
Widevine for Android-based platforms (Fire TV, Android TV, Chrome), FairPlay for Apple platforms (tvOS, iOS, Safari), and PlayReady for Windows applications. Multi-DRM delivery via Axinom, Pallycon, or BuyDRM so a single asset stream is protected across all platforms without maintaining separate content preparation pipelines. Token-based licence server integration that verifies subscription status before a DRM licence is issued. Offline download with DRM licence expiry for premium mobile tiers. Geo-restriction enforcement at both the CDN and licence server level to honour territorial rights agreements.
SVOD, AVOD, and TVOD monetisation
Subscription billing with configurable trial periods, plan tiers, and upgrade or downgrade logic. Ad-supported free tier with server-side ad insertion (SSAI) via Google DAI or AWS MediaTailor, which inserts ads at the server before the stream reaches the player -- eliminating client-side ad blockers as a revenue risk. Transactional pay-per-view and rental purchase flows with configurable viewing windows. Bundle upgrade prompts when a user reaches a paywalled content point. Revenue reporting by content title, monetisation model, and geographic region so the content and finance teams have the numbers they need without pulling raw database exports.
Video ingest, transcoding, and delivery
Content ingest pipeline from your media management system or direct upload. Cloud transcoding to HLS and DASH with multiple quality levels, using AWS Elemental MediaConvert or a similar managed service. Thumbnail sprite generation for scrubbing previews. CDN delivery via CloudFront or Akamai with adaptive bitrate streaming so viewers on slower connections get a lower bitrate rather than a buffering spinner. Viewership analytics via Conviva, Mux, or a custom pipeline -- play starts, buffering events, quality switches, and watch-through rate by episode and platform.
Frequently asked questions
Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV/Google TV are the four platforms that cover the majority of connected TV viewers in North America and Europe. Each requires a separate native app because they run different operating systems, use different SDKs, and have separate app stores with their own certification processes. Samsung Tizen and LG webOS add coverage for smart TVs but require separate development tracks. A practical approach for most launches is to ship Roku, Fire TV, and Apple TV first -- those three platforms cover the largest share of connected TV households -- and add Android TV and smart TV platforms in a subsequent phase.
DRM (Digital Rights Management) is the content protection layer that prevents unauthorised copying or redistribution of video streams. Whether you need it depends on your content. If you have licensed content from studios or rights holders, DRM is almost always a contractual requirement. If your content is original and you are not under a third-party licensing agreement, DRM is still worth implementing if you are selling subscriptions -- it prevents someone from capturing and redistributing streams you are selling access to. Each platform uses a different DRM system: Widevine for Android-based platforms, FairPlay for Apple, and PlayReady for Microsoft. A multi-DRM implementation covers all three from a single encrypted content asset.
A three-platform OTT launch targeting Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV, with a shared backend for video delivery, subscription management, and DRM, typically delivers in 14 to 20 weeks. The timeline depends on the complexity of your subscription model, whether live streaming is included, and how much of the backend infrastructure already exists. Each platform has its own certification timeline after submission -- Roku typically takes 1 to 2 weeks, Apple App Store review is 1 to 3 days, and Amazon Appstore is 3 to 5 days. We build certification preparation into the project timeline so these review windows do not come as a surprise at the end of development.
OTT platform development cost depends on the number of platforms targeted, the complexity of the subscription and monetisation model, whether live streaming is included, and how much backend infrastructure exists. A three-platform build (Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV) with a shared backend, subscription billing, and DRM is typically scoped as a fixed-cost project. We provide a detailed breakdown after a scoping call where we understand your content model, audience size, and monetisation structure. Visit our pricing page or contact us to start a scoping conversation.
