FAST Platform Differences (Roku, Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels, Fire TV)

Created by Andrew Baritz, Modified on Wed, 7 Jan at 12:18 PM by Andrew Baritz

FAST Platform Differences (Roku, Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels, Fire TV)

At a glance
“FAST” is not one environment. Platforms differ in onboarding, playback rules, ad policies, measurement expectations, and what parts of monetization you control. Treat every platform launch as a separate product release with shared infrastructure.

Who this is for

Channel ops leads planning multi-platform distribution
Ad ops teams reconciling platform vs ad-stack reporting
Engineering teams hardening playback + SSAI

What changes by platform (practical list)

Playback stack: device player constraints, codec tolerance, handling of discontinuities
Ad insertion model: platform-managed vs operator-managed vs hybrid
Ad policy: pod limits, restricted categories, creative specs, frequency rules
Measurement: definitions of “impression,” dedupe behavior, reconciliation rules
QA and approval: how strict they are on cueing, metadata, and uptime

Responsibility boundaries (keep teams aligned)

Area	You (operator)	Platform / partners
Stream uptime, ladder, encoding stability	Own it end-to-end	May reject unstable channels
Ad break signaling (SCTE-35 or schedule-based)	Provide correct cueing or break map	May enforce rules or ignore breaks if non-compliant
Demand + yield	Own it if using your stack; partially if hybrid	Own it if platform-monetized
Reporting truth source	Set reconciliation process	Platform defines their own metrics and counting

Walkthrough: how to avoid “one-size-fits-all” failures

Define your monetization model per platform (platform monetized vs your SSAI/ad server vs hybrid).
Lock a pod policy (60/90/120s) and verify it is acceptable across platforms.
Validate creative specs (codec, audio, duration) against the strictest device environment.
Run platform-specific QA (cold start, channel change, ad transitions, no-fill behavior).
Reconcile reporting (platform starts → SSAI sessions → ad opportunities → impressions → revenue).

Real-world examples (why platforms “feel different”)

Example 1: Same stream, different ad outcomes

Your SSAI creates 1 ad opportunity per 10 minutes for everyone.
Platform A caches manifests aggressively → fewer unique SSAI sessions → fewer ad decisions.
Platform B uses different device mix → more playback failures on heavy creatives.
Operational takeaway: compare unique sessions and ad errors by user agent, not just total starts.

Example 2: Platform-monetized vs operator-monetized confusion

Platform monetized: you may see high starts but limited visibility into demand decisions.
Operator monetized: you own fill/yield but also own every ad failure.
Operational takeaway: assign a single owner for “monetization health” regardless of model.

Ticket-ready checklists

Platform launch ticket template

Platform:
Monetization model (platform / operator / hybrid):
Playback URLs (HLS/DASH):
SSAI vendor:
Pod lengths + cadence:
Cueing method (SCTE-35 / schedule rules):
ads.txt/app-ads.txt URLs:
Creative spec policy:
QA devices tested:
Known platform policy constraints:
Go-live date/time:
Rollback plan:

Platform differences QA matrix (starter)

Test	Pass criteria	Notes
Cold start	Playback under 5–10s consistently	Measure by device type
Ad break entry/exit	No glitches, no black frames, no audio pops	Test 60/90/120s pods
No-fill behavior	Falls back to slate/house content without dead air	Required for “watchability”
Ad error rate	<1% fatal ad playback errors	Segment by user agent

Common pitfalls

Assuming “a working stream” means “a monetizable stream” across platforms
Using long pods (e.g., 180s) without verifying platform tolerance
Ignoring device-specific codec/bitrate failures that show up as “no revenue”
Comparing platform impressions to SSAI impressions without a reconciliation model

FAST Platform Differences (Roku, Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels, Fire TV)

FAST Platform Differences (Roku, Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels, Fire TV)

Who this is for

What changes by platform (practical list)

Responsibility boundaries (keep teams aligned)

Walkthrough: how to avoid “one-size-fits-all” failures

Real-world examples (why platforms “feel different”)

Example 1: Same stream, different ad outcomes

Example 2: Platform-monetized vs operator-monetized confusion

Ticket-ready checklists

Platform launch ticket template

Platform differences QA matrix (starter)

Common pitfalls

Sources