IPTV glossary
The words you meet when you set up an IPTV player, in short definitions, with what they mean in Tivelio. To choose between the two kinds of source, read Xtream Codes or M3U?; for everything Tivelio does, see the feature catalogue.
IPTV
Internet Protocol Television: television and videos delivered over an internet connection instead of an aerial, cable or satellite. The word names a way of delivering, not a service: the channels and programmes come from a provider. See what an IPTV player is.
IPTV player
An app that plays IPTV streams from a source that its user adds, usually an Xtream account or an M3U playlist. A player has no channels of its own; Tivelio is one. See What is an IPTV player?
Xtream Codes (API)
Originally the name of a server software for IPTV services; today, mostly its interface, the Xtream Codes API, which many servers implement. A player connects with a server address, a username and a password, and receives the categories, live channels, films, series, programme guide and catch-up. See how to add an Xtream account.
M3U
A plain-text playlist format: each entry is the address of a stream, after a line (#EXTINF) that gives its name and often its logo and group. Born with music players, it is the most common way to hand out an IPTV playlist. See how to add an M3U playlist.
M3U8
An M3U file encoded in UTF-8. The extension also marks the playlists of an HLS stream. In Tivelio, a .m3u8 IPTV playlist is added exactly like an M3U one. See Xtream Codes or M3U?
Playlist
A list of streams with their names, logos and groups. In IPTV, usually the M3U playlist that a provider gives as an address or a file; Tivelio files its entries in a Playlist section, organised by the playlist’s groups. See M3U playlist.
EPG
Electronic programme guide: the schedule of each channel, now, next and later. In Tivelio, the guide comes with an Xtream account, when the provider publishes one; an M3U playlist has none today. See programme guide.
XMLTV
An XML format for TV listings, used by IPTV providers to publish their programme guide; each channel is matched to its schedule by an identifier. Tivelio reads the XMLTV guide of Xtream accounts, not the guide address that some M3U playlists carry. See programme guide.
Catch-up / replay
Watching a programme that has already been broadcast, from an archive that the provider keeps for a number of days, channel by channel. In Tivelio: Xtream accounts, from the programme guide, on archived channels. See catch-up.
VOD
Video on demand: films and series that you start whenever you like, unlike live channels. In Tivelio, Xtream accounts get Films and Series sections; the videos of an M3U playlist stay in the Playlist section. See films.
HLS
HTTP Live Streaming: a streaming protocol created by Apple that cuts a stream into short segments listed in an .m3u8 playlist. Many IPTV providers offer it next to TS. In Tivelio, live channels can be set to TS or HLS when the provider allows both. See live stream format.
TS
MPEG transport stream: a container format from broadcast television; many IPTV live channels are sent as a continuous .ts stream. In Tivelio, catch-up is always played as TS. See live stream format.
User-Agent
The name that an app gives of itself to a server with each request. Some IPTV providers only accept certain players; in Tivelio, the User-Agent is chosen in the player settings: Tivelio, VLC, Chrome, Safari, Firefox or your own value. See User-Agent.
Picture-in-picture
A small video window that stays visible while you do something else. Tivelio has two, both in Tivelio Pro: in the app, while you browse, on every platform; and the system one, outside the app, on Android phones and tablets, iPhone, iPad, and Android TV when the TV supports it. See picture-in-picture.