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Streaming Search by Papaya

Search a title, tap a poster, it plays on the room's Apple TV

Driver name in Composer: Streaming Search. Model: Search & Launch. Manufacturer: Papaya Web Services. File: Papaya_Streaming_Search.c4z. Current driver version: 1.0.23. Store slug: streaming-search. Bundled with the Apple TV driver (one Apple TV license covers it). It does nothing on its own: it needs the Apple TV by Papaya driver.

Overview

Streaming Search puts a "what do you want to watch?" screen on every Control4 navigator: the iOS and Android Control4 app and touchscreens. The customer types a show or movie, sees poster results, taps one, and it opens on the room's Apple TV in the right app, at that title.

  • One driver per screen. No tiles to pre-build and no per-title setup.
  • Results only show services that deep-link to the exact title on Apple TV. The screen lists Apple TV+, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock and Pluto TV.
  • A launch behaves like picking a mini app: it turns the Apple TV's room on with the Apple TV as the source and binds the remote, then opens the title.
  • Search results and posters come from the Papaya resolver service over the internet. No API keys are stored on site.

Who it is for: customers who want to find a title without hunting through each app. Pairs well with the Apple TV driver's app tiles.

Requirements

  • Apple TV by Papaya driver installed and paired in the room, version 1.9.12 or newer (room-on from a launch needs 1.9.10+; the room label in the dropdown needs 1.9.11+).
  • Control4 OS 4.x. Tested on the iOS Control4 app and touchscreens.
  • Controller internet access to reach the Papaya resolver (search and posters).
  • Apple TV in IP control mode (deep links do not work in IR only mode).
  • The target streaming apps installed on the Apple TV.

Installing and first setup

  1. Make sure the room's Apple TV by Papaya driver is installed, paired and working.
  2. In Composer Pro, add Streaming Search to the room.
  3. Select the Streaming Search driver. Open the Apple TV property. It is a dropdown of the Apple TV by Papaya drivers in the project, labelled by name, room and device ID. Pick the room's Apple TV.
  4. Check the read-only Target Apple TV property shows the right Apple TV and room.
  5. Make the button visible. Control4 adds every experience button as Hidden. In the room's Navigator or Menu Settings, open the experience menu (for example Watch or Comfort), click Modify, set Streaming Search to Visible, and use Apply To for other rooms.
  6. Refresh Navigators.
  7. Open Streaming Search from the navigator, search a title and tap a result.

The dropdown fills itself a few seconds after the driver loads (it retries for about 20 seconds). If it still looks empty, run Refresh Apple TV List.

Open the screen from the Control4 tile in the navigator, not from a phone home-screen shortcut. A shortcut opens the page without the credentials it needs to launch.

Properties

  • Driver Version: read only. Installed version.
  • Apple TV: dropdown of the project's Apple TV by Papaya drivers. Default "(refresh - no Apple TVs found yet)". Pick the one this screen launches on.
  • Target Apple TV: read only. Confirms the chosen Apple TV with room and device ID, or "pick an Apple TV above".
  • Resolver URL: the Papaya resolver address. Leave at the default unless support tells you otherwise.
  • Status: read only. Last action or result, for example "2 Apple TV(s) found" or "Launching on Apple TV ...".
  • Debug Mode: Off (default) or On. On prints diagnostics to the Lua tab.

Variables the driver publishes for its screen: RESOLVER_URL, TARGET_ATV, TARGET_ATV_NAME, TARGET_ROOM.

Actions

  • Refresh Apple TV List: rebuilds the Apple TV dropdown from the project. Run it if the list is empty or stale.
  • Apply: re-reads the Apple TV selection and refreshes Target Apple TV.

Programming

  • Command LAUNCH (Link): relays a link to the selected Apple TV with a room-on request. The search screen uses it. You normally do not call it from programming; to open a title from programming, use the Apple TV driver's OPEN_LINK command directly.
  • Event Launched: fires when a title is launched from the search screen.
  • No conditionals.

How a launch works: on the phone app the screen sends LAUNCH to its own driver, which sends OPEN_LINK to the chosen Apple TV with a request to turn its room on. On touchscreens the screen can send OPEN_LINK to the Apple TV directly. The Apple TV driver converts the web link into the app's deep link.

Connections and bindings

None. Streaming Search is an experience button (web view) driver. Control4 does not expose connections for this type of driver, so you cannot bind it to the App Switcher. The Apple TV is chosen with the Apple TV property instead.

Best practices

  • Add one Streaming Search per room that has an Apple TV, and point each at its own room's Apple TV.
  • Turn on Auto-Press Open on the Apple TV driver so Prime Video and Paramount+ titles start without a tap on the "Open" prompt.
  • Turn on Auto-Pick Profile on the Apple TV driver if the household uses one main profile.
  • After the customer launches a title from the phone, they tap back and pick the Apple TV in the room for the remote. Control4 gives web view screens no way to jump the phone app to another screen.
  • Keep both drivers current. Many fixes need both the Apple TV and Streaming Search updated.

Troubleshooting

  • Apple TV dropdown is empty: run Refresh Apple TV List. Confirm the Apple TV driver file is Papaya_AppleTV.c4z (the list matches by file name). Composer does not always redraw dynamic lists; reselect the driver if the list looks stale.
  • Dropdown shows no room name: update the Apple TV driver to 1.9.11 or newer, which publishes its room.
  • Screen says "Open this screen from the Control4 tile": it was opened from a shortcut or a browser. Open it from the navigator tile.
  • Status: "No Apple TV selected. Pick one in the Apple TV dropdown.": choose the Apple TV, then try again.
  • Tap shows "Launch failed (code)": the touchscreen could not reach the Apple TV driver. Check the Apple TV driver is online and the selection is right, then retry.
  • Title opens but the room does not turn on: update the Apple TV driver to 1.9.12 or newer.
  • Search failed or posters do not load: check the controller has internet and Resolver URL is the default. Posters load through the resolver.
  • No results: only titles on the supported deep-link services show. Try another spelling.
  • Nothing happens right after the phone app opens: the Control4 app can take 15 to 30 seconds after launch before web view buttons respond. Wait and tap again. This is a Control4 app behavior.
  • Opens the app but not the title, or an "Open" prompt appears: see the Apple TV driver's deep link list. Turn on Auto-Press Open.

Limitations

  • Apple TV only (through Apple TV by Papaya). It does not launch on Samsung TVs or other players.
  • Shows only services that deep-link on tvOS. Netflix, Hulu and Max are not searchable because their apps do not accept title links.
  • Cannot move the phone app to the Apple TV remote screen after a launch. The customer taps back.
  • Needs internet for search and posters.
  • No connections; the Apple TV is picked in properties.

Version history highlights

  • 1.0.23: driver code encrypted. No functional changes.
  • 1.0.9: layout clears the Control4 bottom toolbar and the iOS home indicator.
  • 1.0.8: more robust handling of the navigator's launch credentials, plus an on-screen diagnostic when they are missing.
  • 1.0.7: launch turns the room on with the Apple TV as source; fires the launch once (fixed a double confirm).
  • 1.0.6: dropdown shows each Apple TV's room.
  • 1.0.5: Apple TV picker became a dropdown; tile opens in the navigator.
  • 1.0.1 to 1.0.2: shows on the iOS/Android app; posters load through the resolver.
  • 1.0.0: first release.

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