Roku Developer Program

Join our online forum to talk to Roku developers and fellow channel creators. Ask questions, share tips with the community, and find helpful resources.
cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
mj1856
Reel Rookie

Roku Private Listening stream mp3

Are there any technical details available about the stream format, uri, port, etc. that are used with the "private listening" feature? Is it a regular MP3 style radio stream, or RTSP/RTP or similar? Or is it something proprietary?  How would one implement the private listening feature in their own application?

I see that the ECP rest api gives a "supports-private-listening" boolean

https://developer.roku.com/docs/developer-program/debugging/external-control-api.md#querydevice-info...

On my own device I see:

<supports-private-listening>true</supports-private-listening>
<supports-private-listening-dtv>true</supports-private-listening-dtv>
 

But then what? Where is the stream url or other technical details?

Thanks.

8 REPLIES 8
necrotek
Roku Guru

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

"Private listening" is a feature available by plugging headphones into your Roku remote or with your mobile phone connected to your Roku with the Roku mobile app. Any audio that is played on a Roku will be redirected to your headphones if connected by either method (not both at the same time). I don't think there is a way to access it any other way. It is not something that developers have access to. depending on the Roku model it may be a blutooth or wifi direct connection to the remote. I have not encountered any documentation that indicates what transfer method the stream is sent as.

https://support.roku.com/en-gb/article/217478308 

https://support.roku.com/en-gb/article/217479488

 

What would you like to accomplish that you think using "Private listening" would be the means to accomplish your intended use case?

0 Kudos
f29
Channel Surfer

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

I also, would like to have this information.  I intend to use it to play the sound through assistive hearing devices as I suffer from a hearing disability.  I sure hope roku is cooperative in accommodating Americans with disabilities by sharing how the app connects for 'private listening'.

mj1856
Reel Rookie

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

I did some investigation and found it uses WebSockets to set audio to stream to an RTP port.  That could be useful.  However, the WebSocket session starts with an auth challenge and required response that appears designed to prevent anyone using this mechanism without having a some sort of secret password or certificate.  Thus, without dev support from Roku, unfortunately I believe it is not possible to access this feature.

0 Kudos
RokuWseemann
Reel Rookie

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

@f29 You may find my project useful. It's an Open Source implementation of the Private Listening protocol that allows you to listen on Mac OS or Linux.

https://github.com/wseemann/RPListening

0 Kudos
f29
Channel Surfer

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

You sir (or madame), are absolutely awesome!  Thank you for figuring this out!

0 Kudos
Stanroz
Channel Surfer

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

Does anyone know if private listening is a lossy stream like Bluetooth or lossless stream like Apple’s Airplay?

0 Kudos
elshnkhlll
Channel Surfer

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

>>  https://github.com/wseemann/RPListening


I am getting 404. Page is gone. 🙁

0 Kudos
renojim
Community Streaming Expert

Re: Roku Private Listening stream mp3

@elshnkhlll, you might ask @RokuWseemann why he took it down.  I did find what appears to be a clone:

https://github.com/runz0rd/RPListening

Roku Community Streaming Expert

Help others find this answer and click "Accept as Solution."
If you appreciate my answer, maybe give me a Kudo.

I am not a Roku employee.
Need Assistance?
Welcome to the Roku Community! Feel free to search our Community for answers or post your question to get help.

Become a Roku Streaming Expert!

Share your expertise, help fellow streamers, and unlock exclusive rewards as part of the Roku Community. Learn more.