Skip to content

Catena SE integration with Catena

Catena SE is a component of the Catena IPTV middleware and provides the “streaming layer”: Catena SE prepares and delivers video streams, while Catena handles the subscriber model and user scenarios.

Instead of Catena, you can use any other compatible middleware that implements the following interaction protocols:

  1. Create, edit, and delete TV channels
  2. Authorize client sessions
  3. Keep the program schedule (EPG) up to date

Typical interaction flow

  • Catena receives the client request (app/STB/TV), determines entitlements and access policy.
  • Catena returns a URL/playlist (or parameters to obtain it) with time/context limitations.
  • Central/Media Server delivers the stream and ensures the required formats/quality/DRM (depending on configuration).
  • Central provides statuses and monitoring data that can be used by Catena and/or external observability systems.

Authorization and link protection

What is typically configured in a Central + Catena setup:

  • Tokens and TTL for playlists/segments (short-lived links).
  • Binding to device/session (if your model requires it).
  • IP/subnet restrictions, geo policies, concurrent session limits (depending on your Catena and integration).
  • CDN caching policies: which URLs can be cached and which must remain “personalized”.

DRM flow

Depending on the chosen scheme, Central can:

  • Prepare protected streams and DRM signaling for clients.
  • Pass identifiers/parameters required for licensing to your licensing system (often integrated into Catena).

It is recommended to document the chosen scheme end-to-end: what identifiers are used, where policy is formed, license TTLs, and how errors are handled.

Observability and statuses

For operating in a Catena environment, the following is usually important:

  • Source and channel statuses (availability, degradation, failovers).
  • Ingest/publish errors and reasons for stops/restarts (if logging/events are enabled).
  • Load and quality metrics (bitrate, segment errors, latency, disk usage for nPVR).