Does iOS support anything outside of HTTP Live Str

Question

If streaming video to an iOS device, do I have to use HTTP Live Streaming? Is HDS supported? The problem is we have limited storage space and HTTP Live Streaming would require us to have more video files. Can someone give me some elucidation on these matters?

Answer 1

iOS devices support HTTP progressive download for .mp4 files, the server could be simply Apache or Nginx. The user experience is quite similar to HTTP live streaming.

RTSP is also possible. You can migrate live555 to iOS platform as the RTSP client, as use DarwinStreamingServer as the RTSP server.

Answer 2

I think that HTTP progressive download is the alternative solution. We already done it through a simple HTTP server. For RTSP or other type of protocol you have to implement it by yourself.

David

Answer 3

If your app will stream more than 10 minutes of video Apple requires that you use HTTP Live Streaming to deliver the video, otherwise your app will be rejected when you submit it to the app store. (This happened to me the first time I submitted my app, before I knew about this requirement.)

From the HTTP Live Streaming Overview:

Warning iOS apps submitted for distribution in the App Store must conform to these requirements.

If your app delivers video over cellular networks, and the video exceeds either 10 minutes duration or 5 MB of data in a five minute period, you are required to use HTTP Live Streaming. (Progressive download may be used for smaller clips.)

If your app uses HTTP Live Streaming over cellular networks, you are required to provide at least one stream at 64 Kbps or lower bandwidth (the low-bandwidth stream may be audio-only or audio with a still image).

These requirements apply to iOS apps submitted for distribution in the App Store for use on Apple products. Non-compliant apps may be rejected or removed, at the discretion of Apple.