tvOS 11.2 SDK Release Notes

Contents:

Introduction

tvOS SDK leverages many of the same frameworks and technologies that you’re already using for iOS development. However, please note that all libraries and frameworks used in your tvOS apps must be built for tvOS, including any 3rd-party libraries. Do not link your tvOS app against frameworks or libraries that are not built with tvOS. Attempting to do so will result in a build failure. Furthermore, bitcode is required for all tvOS apps. All apps and frameworks in the app bundle must include bitcode.

tvOS 11.2 SDK provides support for developing tvOS apps. It’s packaged with a complete set of Xcode tools, compilers, and frameworks for creating apps for tvOS. These tools include the Xcode IDE and the Instruments analysis tool, among many others.

With this software you can develop apps for Apple TV running tvOS 11.2. You can also test your apps using the included tvOS Simulator, which supports tvOS 11.2. tvOS 11.2 SDK requires a Mac computer running macOS Sierra 10.12.6 or later.

This version of tvOS is intended for installation only on devices registered with the Apple Developer Program. Attempting to install this version of tvOS in an unauthorized manner could put your device in an unusable state.

Tools and Developer Resources

You obtain Xcode 9.2 from the Mac App Store. It is a free download that installs directly into the Applications folder.

The Apple Developer Program provides everything you need to build and distribute your apps on the App Store for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch. Membership includes access to beta OS releases, advanced app capabilities, and tools to develop, test, and distribute apps and Safari extensions. For more information, visit Apple Developer Program.

Apple provides the following resources to support development in tvOS:

Bug Reporting

For issues not mentioned in the Tools and Developer Resources section, please file bugs through the Apple Developer website (https://developer.apple.com/bug-reporting/).

When filing a bug, please include the full version number in the bug title and in the description. To find the version number, open Settings > General > About. The version number is shown next to Version and looks like 11.2 (15Kxxxxx).

Additionally, you may discuss these issues and tvOS 11.2 SDK in the Apple Developer Forums: https://forums.developer.apple.com/.

Release Notes Updates

tvOS Release Notes is sometimes updated after a release is distributed. Please check this document for updates.

Revision: tvOS1120 - TRN1

New in tvOS 11.2

Introductory Pricing for Auto-Renewable Subscriptions

Offer new customers a discounted introductory price for your auto-renewable subscriptions on the App Store. tvOS 11.2 introduces new classes (SKProductDiscount and SKProductSubscriptionPeriod) and new properties on SKProduct (subscriptionPeriod and introductoryPrice) to provide details on the introductory pricing and billing period you’ve selected for your auto-renewable subscriptions. You can use these new API additions to localize and display information about introductory pricing to your users. You’ll be able to configure introductory pricing on your in-app purchase page in iTunes Connect soon.

Mode Switching

AVKit uses automatic frame rate and dynamic range switching for fullscreen video playback on Apple TV 4K under most circumstances. tvOS 11.2 adds APIs for these features for apps that don’t use AVKit for video playback. For information, see https://developer.apple.com/fall17/503.

Apps that may suffer performance issues when displaying HDR content can limit content to SDR by setting the Supports HDR Color Mode target property to NO in the Info pane of the Project editor.

Notes and Known Issues

The following items relate to using tvOS 11.2 SDK to develop code.

Foundation

Known Issues

  • Clients of NSURLSessionStreamTask that use a non-secure connection fail to connect when an error occurs during PAC file evaluation and the system is configured for either Web Proxy Auto Discovery (WPAD) or Proxy Automatic Configuration (PAC). A PAC evaluation failure can occur when the PAC file contains invalid JavaScript or the HTTP host serving the PAC file is unreachable. (33609198)

    Workaround: Use startSecureConnection() to establish a secure connection.

Vision

Resolved Issues