Introduction to IPTV
IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) is a digital television service delivered using the Internet. Unlike traditional broadcast and cable TV, IPTV transmits television content, including live TV and video on demand (VOD), through packet-based internet technology. This approach enables more interactive and flexible multimedia services.IPTV in Zoom Player
Zoom Player IPTV support covers two distinct features, a channels stream list(s) and an electronic program guide(s).The channel stream list is based on the ".M3U" playlist format which can be downloaded from your IPTV provider or through one of the free IPTV services (see below). The Electronic Program Guide (or EPG) is an ".XML" data file containing all the program information for the channels specified in the channel playlist file. The EPG XML file should be available through your IPTV provider or using one of the 3rd party EPG sites (see below).
When opening the IPTV interface for the very first time, Zoom Player will prompt you to download a free IPTV channel list from the Free-TV project on GitHub. Even if you choose not to, you can later on click a button in Zoom Player's advanced options dialog to add the Free-TV project channels.
Free IPTV Channels
There are two popular GitHub projects that maintain a list of publicly available IPTV channels:1. Free-TV
2. IPTV-ORG
Free Electronic Program Guide
Here are some more resources and information on free EPG:1. IPTV-ORG
2. EPGGuide.net
3. EPG.best
Xtream Codes
Xtream Codes support is not yet implemented in Zoom Player. Most service providers should provide links to Stream Playlists (M3U) and Program Guide (XML). Xtream Codes support may be added in a future version, make sure to keep up with the latest releases.IPTV configuration
To configure IPTV in Zoom Player, first open the Advanced Options dialog to the "Playback / IPTV" page.Local Stream Lists
Specifies the channels playlist file(s) that reside on your PC or local network (".M3U" file extension).Network Stream Lists
Specifies the channels playlist URLs (links) that Zoom Player should download from the internet. You can specify an auto-update refresh rate (in days) for each link.To support IPTV providers that require a specific user agent text to access automated downloads, you can set a custom User Agent for each entry.
Local Electronic Program Guide
Specifies the EPG file(s) that reside on your PC or local network (".XML" file extension).Network Electronic Program Guide
Specifies the electronic program guide URLs (links) that Zoom Player should download from the internet. You can specify an auto-update refresh rate (in days) for each link.To support IPTV providers that require a specific user agent text to access automated downloads, you can set a custom User Agent for each entry.
Number of description lines to use in the Electronic Program Guide
Controls the number of lines to use for the program description in the EPG side-panel.Stream List Logo Size
Control the Channel Logo size on the channel list.EPG Font Size
Controls the Electronic Program Guide's font size.Stream List / Electronic Program Guide screen ratio
The IPTV interface (when the EPG side-panel is visible) is split into two panels, a Channel stream list and an Electronic Program Guide. This setting controls the on-screen width ratio between the two.Play Program live stream offset (seconds)
When playing a program from an Archive channel, it often takes the IPTV server several seconds to create a play buffer. Specifying a program play time that falls on this buffer period can cause the stream to fail loading. By specifying a live stream offset of a few seconds, this issue can be avoided.Archive Channel Symbol
This setting allows you to customize the icon that appears next to IPTV archive (VOD) channels.Safe Mode
Enabling "Safe Mode" prevents editing favorites, hiding groups or time shifting channels, all features you don't want accidentally changed by inexperienced users sharing your PC.IPTV window should remain on-top when entering fullscreen
Keeps the IPTV window as "Stay on top" when Zoom Player enters fullscreen mode.Sort the Stream List (alphabetical order)
If enabled, the Channel Stream list is sorted in alphabetical order. Most channel lists are already sorted by group, region, genre or some other factor so enabling this setting is rarely required.Ignore Grouping
Since some IPTV providers may list 1000's of channels, the IPTV provider will segment the channels into groups such as Region or Genre. By enabling this setting you will see all the channels in one long list without any grouping.EPG filter using program description
Zoom Player allows you to quickly filter through the program listing in the EPG. By enabling this setting, both the program title and description is used to filter (otherwise just the program title is used).Hide program end time in EPG listing
Can clear up some screen real estate.Hide outdated EPG entries
Hides all EPG entries that are older than the current time.Hide outdated archive channel EPG entries that are too old to stream
Archived IPTV channels provide a limited number of archival days, beyond these days older content can no longer be played. Enabling this setting hides old EPG entries that are no longer playable.Increase Font Size along with Logo Size
Enabling this setting locks the Channel stream list font size to the Channel's Logo size (specified above).Playing an IPTV channel clears the playlist
With this setting enabled, playing an IPTV channel will first clear the current playlist, otherwise the channel is added as the last playlist entry.Merge multiple EPG files/links containing info on the same channel
If you are using multiple sources for your electronic program guide, these sources may contain duplicate information for some of the channels. By enabling this setting, Zoom Player tries to merge EPG data from multiple sources (which can slow down the initial load time).Auto-Close IPTV Window after
Specify the number of seconds until the IPTV window auto-closes on inactivity.EPG and Stream List colors
You can modify any color used in the channel stream list or EPG display.Hidden Groups
This interface allows you to unhide groups previously hidden through the right-click menu or hide new groups by their Group title.Logo Cache (Clear)
Zoom Player caches the IPTV channel's logo. Pressing the clear button wipes this cache and new logos will download the next time you browse through the channel list.Using Zoom Player's IPTV interface
You can open Zoom Player's IPTV interface by pressing Ctrl+"G", right-clicking the video area and looking under the "open interface" sub-menu. Or pressing the "Custom Action" button (unless you changed its default behavior) which looks like a star-burst on the top-left section of Zoom Player's skin (assuming you're using the default skin).The Stream List Panel
The stream list displays groups of IPTV channels. You can open and close groups by clicking them. The right-click stream list context menu can be used to hide groups and add channels to your favorites list.When adding channels to your favorites list, they appear as the first channels in a new "Favorites" group. You can use the right-click context menu on a favorite channel to re-order the list and to remove channels from your favorites.
Use the "Filter Streams" box to filter channels based on their name and the "X" button to clear the filtering.
To play the channel live, double click the channel's entry or select it and press the "Play Stream" button.
When specifying multiple IPTV playlists, you can select which playlist (or all) are currently visible from a drop-down menu above the stream list.
The Electronic Program Guide Panel
When clicking on a channel's entry in the Stream List panel, Zoom Player tries to display the channel's program guide (if it exists, some channels may not have any information to display).Right-clicking a program in the EPG displays more information and options for this program and channel. You can choose to create a notification which alerts you that the program is about or start or select an option to play the channel automatically right before the program starts. If the EPG is out of sync with the live broadcast, you can specify a time-shift value to correct the listing for this channel.
If the EPG is listing an archive channel, you may see the "Play Program" button enabled for some of the listed programs. Double clicking the program or clicking the "Play Program" button starts playback of the selected program.
The Small Buttons
Above the stream list panel, you will notice several small buttons:[<]
Hide/Show the EPG
[-]
Toggle 50% IPTV window transparency
[↺]
New EPG/Stream List downloaded, click to update.
[⚙]
Configure IPTV.