`widgetPlayer` not working

[axtgr]

I'm developing an add-on for a website that requires its videos to be embedded. The Stream Response doc mentions three properties just for that: widgetPlayer, widgetSidebar and widgetPlayerStates. Unfortunately, however I try to use them, they don't work. The video either plays in the default player or doesn't play at all.

I'm testing it in Stremio 4 and my guess is that this feature isn't implemented in this version. Is this the case or am I possibly doing something wrong?

[jaruba]

Hi @alex-shnayder , you are correct in believing that the widget related properties have been discontinued in the latest Stremio versions because no known add-on was using them.

Thank you for noticing the documentation issue and showing interest in being a Stremio Add-on Developer.

I will talk to the team about if and when they should be re-added and come back with more details on the issue as soon as possible.

[jaruba]

Hi again @alex-shnayder , I've discussed this issue with the team. In order to re-add this implementation we need to validate that it can be used for a legitimate use case.

Could you state the website you would of implemented this for? You can either answer here, or, if you prefer, contact me personally by email at [email protected]

[axtgr]

Hi @jaruba, thanks for discussing this!

I had stumbled across the addon competition and decided to participate. For starters I wanted to make an addon for vk.com and then maybe another website. If this particular case is not convincing enough, I'll add a few points that might justify adding the feature:

1. Most video and stream sites don't support direct links to their content. Although it's technically possible to retrieve them, it's an unreliable hack that can break any time.
2. Some of the sites actually prohibit getting direct links. This makes such addons gray area and puts them in danger of getting blocked by the site owner.
3. Viewers may actually prefer the embedded player over the default one. Many embedded players support advanced features of their platforms such as chat, donations, etc. Such a player can be offered as a second option along with the native stream.
4. An embedded stream can be used as a fallback for the cases when the native one cannot be obtained (consider point 1).
5. It is a possible way to monetize content (as mentioned in docs/BENEFITS). I haven't investigated this, but would like to give it a try.

[Ivshti]

This is pretty solid reasoning, and to a great extent why we implemented this in the first place.

We're going to bring it back with one of the next updates, we are preparing a pull request as of right now.

[axtgr]

@Ivshti @jaruba thank you!

[axtgr]

Any news on this?

[axtgr]

Sorry for pushing this, it just stops me from making a certain addon.

FWIW I think it would be a good idea to reduce this feature to a single property (widgetPlayer or renamed to whatever). It would be an alternative to the main streamable properties (url, externalUrl, etc.), and the player would always replace the native one. This would cover most real-life cases and at the same time greatly simplify the feature.