How HbbTV applications launch

HbbTV 1.0+

A broadcast-related HbbTV application reaches the screen through the signalling carried in the broadcast stream. The broadcaster includes an Application Information Table (AIT) in the service, describing each application, where its entry page lives and how it should be started.

When the viewer tunes to the service, the terminal reads the AIT and acts on the control code of each listed application:

• AUTOSTART — the terminal launches the application immediately, typically showing the familiar “press red” call to action.
• PRESENT — the application is available but only starts when the viewer requests it.

The application itself is an HTML/CSS/JavaScript page, fetched either over broadband from the broadcaster’s servers or, where signalled, from a DSM-CC object carousel in the broadcast stream — so the red button works even on a receiver with no internet connection.

This page is part of the pipeline end-to-end test set and will be replaced by migrated content from the existing developer portal.