Apple wants to streamline your cable viewing experiencing through its recent initiative to introduce the Single sign-on feature for iOS and tvOS.
A number of cable service providers have already jumped on-board and these include CenturyLink Prism, Hawaiian Telecom, MetroCast and Guam's GTA. This list further expanded the previous roster constituted by Dish, DirecTV, Hotwire and Sling TV.
How Single Sign-On Works
Up to this point, cable subscribers have to provide their account details to different TV apps when viewing content found on Apple mobile devices and the Apple TV.
The Single sign-on feature will only require cable subscribers to enter their account information in the iOS Settings app once in order to be signed into TV Everywhere apps. This is, of course, limited to the current stable of participating cable companies.
According to Mac Rumors, Single sign-on began rolling out Dec. 6 to iOS 10 and tvOS 10 devices but is still limited to the United States. Major providers such as Spectrum, Google Fiber, AT&T U-verse, Verizon Fios and Comcast Xfinity have not yet confirmed whether they will be joining the initiative.
Sign-On Process
To use Single sign-on, head to the Settings menu, then choose Accounts. You will find a list of TV providers there and select whichever cable company you are subscribed to. You will then have to enter your account details. You can ask your cable for support if you don't know this information.
Now, here is where things can get a little complicated. Cable providers have their respective apps on iOS and tvOS and before using Single sign-on, some of these could require their subscribers to log in first into those apps. That should be quite tedious. Third-party app support could also entail coding tweaks, so some providers could offer support later on.
Apple stressed that Single sign-on will only work on iOS 10 and later versions. The process, thereafter, pretty much fulfills Apple's promise of single sign-in and instant access to video apps included in pay TV subscription.
Single Sign-On and Apple TV
Observers believe that Apple has rolled out Single sign-on feature to pave the way for its upcoming TV app. This is a proprietary video streaming platform that aggregates media content streaming and on-demand video services. One can say that it is also a location to find new content and track what a user is watching across different devices.
The Apple TV app is expected to debut once iOS 10.2 and tvOS 10.1 are unleashed. These platforms are currently in beta stage so they are expected to roll out soon.
