Smart Notifications Come to the Big Screen

As part of our effort to allow our customers to keep up with the latest technologies, we are proud to announce the release of our tvOS SDK, bringing smart notifications to the big screen.

###Remote Notifications### Despite its limitations, in tvOS 10, Apple TV apps support remote notifications using Apple's Push Notification Service. This allows tvOS apps to receive remote notifications and update content in response to these notifications.

This also makes it possible for most of the smart notifications in Notificare to work just like they do in iOS. As always, your users are in control and the opt-in for badges in notifications is totally up to them.

####Actionable Alerts####

In tvOS the simple alerts can also contain actionable content. Although some of the actionable content you can now use in iOS will not, for obvious reasons, be available in tvOS, you can still collect the user's response, perform deep linking, open other apps or ask for text input (with the Siri remote they can even use their voice to reply).

####HTML Content####

Even though the use of UIWebView is prohibited in tvOS, our SDK will allow you to display HTML content in notifications. With some work, reusing all those rich HTML templates that you're already sending for iOS devices, is probably one of the first things your marketers will want to do.

####Images####

Sending an image gallery with new products or a product break-down is also possible in tvOS. Simply drag and drop your images into the message composer and hit send like you would do for iOS. This kind of media looks particularly great on the big screen!

####Maps####

In tvOS 9.2, Apple included MapKit support for tvOS. This allows Notificare to include maps in the content of notifications. Just like you're already doing in iOS, pointing users to your stores or venues is as easy in tvOS as it has always been in iOS devices.

####Videos####

This is probably one of the types of content that really make sense in tvOS apps. We've added support for MPEG4 videos and YouTube content, allowing your apps to display those video reels with way more impact than they delivered in smaller screens.

####Deep Linking#### Push users to certain areas of your apps when opening a notification is also possible in tvOS, so preparing your deep links is as easy as in iOS. A tvOS app is capable of handling URL Schemes the same way iOS does, allowing you to keep using the same kind of interactions you are already using in iOS.

###Location Services### Although geo-fencing or beacon monitoring is not possible in tvOS (obviously), our SDK will still gather the user location (if permitted by the user), allowing you to send geo-targeted notifications the same way as in iOS devices.

Read all about how to use and implement these features in the documentation.

###What's missing?### Unfortunately, the Apple TV does not include a browser, this means that you can't send web pages as the content of your notifications, nor can you push users to a web page when clicking an action. We hope Apple will bring Safari to the big screen in future releases, although we do understand why this might keep developers from creating native apps for this platform. A mail app is also missing in tvOS, although this one makes less sense due to the nature of this device. Obviously, taking pictures, making a phone call or sending an SMS is also not possible in tvOS, rendering this type of functionality, as you would currently use it in iOS devices, impossible in tvOS.

###Opportunities for Retail & E-Commerce### Although the investment needed to port your iOS app to tvOS for your brand (let alone developing it from scratch) might seem monstrous at first, you should realize that the big screen makes total sense when it comes to browse your brand products while sitting in the couch. Moreover, we also see that adding great interactions in-store, using your existing monitors, could take your brand to the next level. Contact our sales in order to get a quote for tvOS development from our professional services or from one of our partners.

What are you waiting for, download our SDK now!