Smart TV Fragmentation: Why Casting Worked for 15 Years and What Replaces It

Hook: Your viewers are on the couch — but your distribution strategy might not be

If you publish video, you’ve probably faced the same pain: one minute viewers are happily tapping a Cast button from their phones to the TV, the next minute a platform change or app update breaks that path and your playback metrics drop. Platform fragmentation and sudden policy changes (like Netflix’s January 2026 decision to remove casting in many contexts) mean creators and publishers can no longer treat casting as an evergreen distribution channel. The question now is: where do you invest scarce dev and product resources to keep TV audiences and revenue growing?

Executive summary (most important points first)

• Casting’s core idea — separation of playback (TV) and control (mobile) — powered 15 years of easy second‑screen experiences, anchored by Chromecast-like devices.
• That model is fracturing as major streamers and device makers prioritize app-first experiences, tighter DRM and ad control, and platform‑level discovery.
• Alternatives you must master in 2026: AirPlay (Apple’s second‑screen), in‑app TV apps (native apps on Roku/Fire TV/tvOS/Android TV), and resilient web playback (HLS/DASH in TV browsers or PWA/HTML5 TV apps).
• Action for creators: audit audience device share, prioritize 2–3 native TV paths, keep a fast web fallback, instrument analytics + SSAI, and treat AirPlay/legacy casting as convenience features — not core distribution.

The casting era: why it worked for 15 years

From roughly 2011 through the mid‑2020s, casting solved a set of hard problems for publishers and users:

• Low friction — a single tap on a phone transferred playback to the largest screen in the home without account re‑entitlement or re‑buffering.
• Device agnosticism — Chromecast‑style receivers were cheap and widely deployed across TVs and dongles, enabling rapid adoption without per‑platform app builds.
• Shared control — the phone became a remote: searching, queuing, and social sharing flowed naturally from the mobile UX.
• Developer convenience — casting APIs let publishers reuse mobile player infrastructure while offloading playback complexity to the receiver device.

Why casting is fragmenting — and why platforms are moving away

Casting remains useful, but the ecosystem incentives have shifted. Look at Netflix’s January 2026 move to remove casting support in many contexts as a signal rather than an outlier: publishers that depended on casting for TV reach woke up to a loss of control.

“Casting is dead. Long live casting!” — industry coverage after Netflix removed mobile‑to‑TV casting in early 2026

Key drivers of the change:

• Monetization and ad tech — server‑side ad insertion (SSAI), ad measurement and identity systems are easier to control inside native apps than through receiver devices that limit the publisher’s ad stack.
• DRM and content licensing — studios and rights holders increasingly require fine‑grained DRM (FairPlay, Widevine, PlayReady) and platform attestation that’s simpler to enforce in native environments.
• Discovery & retention — platforms want users to find and stay inside TV‑level UIs (recommendations, channels, top lists), not be redirected by a second screen to an external experience.
• Analytics and identity — accurate attribution and viewing metrics are harder to obtain when playback is handed off to a receiver that strips or masks telemetry.
• Security & UX complexity — maintaining compatibility across many receiver firmware versions is operationally costly.

What replaces casting: the practical alternatives for 2026

There is no one‑size‑fits‑all replacement. Expect a hybrid approach — native TV apps + web fallback + selective second‑screen — to be the resilient strategy for the next 3–5 years. Below is a clear comparison and implementation checklist for each path.

1) AirPlay (Apple’s second‑screen model)

AirPlay continues to be the dominant second‑screen for Apple ecosystems. It behaves like casting from a UX perspective but leans into Apple’s device trust and DRM (FairPlay) model.

• Pros: Smooth UX for iOS users, strong DRM integration, wide support on Apple TV and many Smart TVs (AirPlay 2), and good playback fidelity for iOS audiences.
• Cons: Apple‑only audience, limited telemetry (playback occurs on the TV with reduced publisher data), and inconsistent support on non‑Apple TVs.

Implementation checklist:

1. Support HLS with FairPlay when you need DRM for Apple devices.
2. Expose AirPlay buttons as a convenience UX, not as the only TV path.
3. Log fallbacks — when AirPlay starts, capture an event to attribute the session in your analytics.

2) In‑app TV apps (native apps on major TV platforms)

Native TV apps are the most strategic route for publishers who want reach, monetization control, and rich analytics. This includes apps on Roku, tvOS (Apple TV), Android TV/Google TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Tizen, LG webOS, Vizio SmartCast and other OSes.

• Pros: Full control over ads, DRM, recommendations, and telemetry. Better placement in platform discovery and deeper feature parity (profiles, downloads, 4K/HDR outputs).
• Cons: Development overhead across many OSes, slower release cycles, and certification requirements.

Implementation checklist (prioritization and technical actions):

1. Audience first — use device analytics (from mobile apps, AMP pages, or surveys) to prioritize 2–3 platforms that cover 70–80% of your TV traffic.
2. Minimum viable TV app — ship a lean app with core playback, sign‑in and ad hooks; add advanced features iteratively.
3. SSAI & ad measurement — implement server‑side ad stitching and use platform SDKs for tracking viewability and attribution.
4. DRM — support Widevine + PlayReady + FairPlay depending on platform and rights requirements.
5. Continuous QA — maintain device labs or device farms for automated testing across firmware versions.

3) Web playback (HTML5 players, PWAs and TV browsers)

The TV browser and HTML5 player route gained traction during 2024–2026 as modern TVs improved browser compatibility and hardware decoding. Web playback can act as a "universal fallback" when native apps aren’t viable.

• Pros: Single codebase, easier updates, and can be used for rapid experiments or geo‑specific rollouts. Useful for FAST channels and ad experiments.
• Cons: Inconsistent codec/DRM support across TV browsers, worse discoverability, and poorer integration with platform recommendations.

Implementation checklist:

1. Implement HLS/DASH with adaptive bitrate and use Encrypted Media Extensions (EME) + supported CDM for DRM.
2. Use a mature HTML5 player with robust fallback handling (Shaka Player, Bitmovin, hls.js where appropriate).
3. Offer a Progressive Web App (PWA) experience on TVs that support installation, and optimize for remote navigation (focus management, large hit targets).

Cross‑cutting technical considerations

Whichever path(s) you choose, these are non‑negotiables in 2026:

• Codec roadmap: Support AV1 where the platform supports it for bandwidth savings; fallback to H.264/HEVC as needed for compatibility.
• DRM & licensing: Integrate with FairPlay, Widevine and PlayReady. Automate license provisioning and token lifetime management.
• SSAI and ad IDs: Standardize on SSAI with clean measurement (Moat/IAS/Ads SDKs), and ensure you can stitch server‑side to avoid ad blockers and receiver limitations.
• Telemetry: Instrument every path (native app, web fallback, AirPlay) so you can compare user behavior and LTV across distribution channels.
• Accessibility & subtitles: Deliver accurate closed captions and multiple language tracks — many platform apps strip or alter subtitle behavior unless properly packaged (CMAF + WebVTT/TTML).

Operational playbook for publishers (practical steps)

Turn the high‑level guidance into an operational plan you can execute in 90 days.

1. Audit & map your audience — Use existing analytics and install questionnaires to quantify TV device share. Prioritize which OSes to support first.
2. Pick your 90‑day MVP — Ship either a Roku + web fallback or tvOS + Android TV pair, depending on where your users are. Keep the app lightweight: sign‑in, home screen, playback with SSAI, and metrics hooks.
3. Implement robust fallbacks — If a receiver rejects DRM or an app isn’t available, route users to a web playback URL or clearly explain the supported device list in the mobile app’s Cast/AirPlay sheet.
4. Instrument strictly — Track acquisition source, device model, playback duration, ad completion, and errors. Use that data to justify further platform investments.
5. Test and iterate — Roll out features to a small cohort, measure conversion uplift and playback stability, then scale based on ROI.

Case study: a lightweight pivot that worked (anonymous, composite example)

A mid‑sized publisher that relied heavily on mobile‑to‑TV casting saw a 20% drop in TV playback after a major streaming partner (a large SVOD) deprecated casting in early 2026. The publisher followed a three‑step pivot:

1. Built a lean Roku/Android TV app (core playback + ad stitching) in 10 weeks using a single cross‑functional team.
2. Kept an optimized web fallback for unsupported devices using Shaka Player with Widevine and SSAI.
3. Maintained AirPlay and legacy casting as convenience features for users with compatible hardware, instrumenting events to map who used them and when.

Outcome: within 6 months the publisher recovered most lost TV minutes and increased ad CPMs via improved ad measurement and targeted FAST channels.

Future predictions: what to expect in the next 24 months

• More platform‑first moves: Large streamers and platform owners will continue to favour native app experiences where they control monetization, measurement and recommendations.
• Hybrid second‑screen APIs: Expect vendor initiatives that preserve the “remote control” convenience of casting while exposing richer analytics and identity signals — but likely under platform‑controlled SDKs.
• Web on TV matures: As TV browsers improve, web playback will be the de‑facto fallback for publishers that can’t support every native platform.
• Consolidation around standards: The industry will gradually converge on a smaller set of DRM + codec + ad measurement patterns, but it will take time — publishers should plan for multi‑path support.

Quick checklist — What to do this quarter

• Run a device share audit and prioritize the top 2 TV platforms to support immediately.
• Ship a web fallback optimized for TV browsers with HLS/DASH + EME.
• Implement SSAI and standardize your DRM stack (FairPlay, Widevine, PlayReady).
• Keep AirPlay and legacy casting as optional conveniences; do not rely on them as primary distribution.
• Instrument end‑to‑end analytics and map LTV by distribution channel.

Final takeaways

Smart TV fragmentation is the new normal. Casting’s simplicity made it indispensable for many years, but platform incentives have changed. In 2026, resilience means owning at least one or two native TV paths, maintaining a high‑quality web fallback, and treating second‑screen features (AirPlay, legacy Chromecast) as convenience layers rather than primary distribution channels.

Focus on where your users actually are, instrument everything, and use incremental releases to prove ROI before expanding to more platforms. That shift turns fragmentation from a threat into a strategic advantage: a diversified TV footprint that protects revenue, improves measurement, and keeps viewers on the couch.

Call to action

Start with a simple audit. If you publish video, run a 30‑day device share and playback funnel review this week — tag your top device families, identify the missing native paths, and schedule a 90‑day MVP build. Want a template? Subscribe to our weekly update for a free 90‑day TV app playbook and a device‑share spreadsheet used by publishers and creators in 2026.

Related Reading

• Affordable In-Car Ambient Sound: Which Mini Bluetooth Speaker Keeps the Cabin Alive?
• Local vs Cloud AI for Smartcams: A Cost and Privacy Comparison
• Why 5G Densification Matters for Dubai Visitors in 2026
• Hotel Tech Stacks & Last‑Mile Innovations: What Tour Operators Must Prioritize in 2026
• How to Market TCG Deals to Collectors: Lessons from Amazon’s MTG and Pokémon Discounts