url_launcher_tvos 0.0.1

The tvOS (Apple TV) implementation of the url_launcher plugin, for launching URLs from Flutter apps.

url_launcher_tvos

The tvOS implementation of url_launcher.

Ported with flutter-tvos plugin port from url_launcher_ios 6.4.1, then finished + verified by hand. See PORTING_REPORT.md.

Usage

Federated plugin implementation — no imports needed from app code; it registers automatically. url_launcher does not endorse a tvOS implementation, so add this package explicitly alongside it:

dependencies:
    url_launcher: ^6.3.2
    url_launcher_tvos: ^0.0.1

Then use the url_launcher API as usual — but not every call behaves as it does on iOS. There is no browser on tvOS, so the in-app browser modes fall back to an external launch and canLaunchUrl can return true for a web URL nothing will open. See the table below before porting an iOS app over.

What works on tvOS — and what doesn't

tvOS has no web browser (no SafariServices / WebKit), so this implementation supports only the external launch surface:

Capability	tvOS	Notes
canLaunchUrl	✅	maps to UIApplication.canOpenURL
launchUrl (external / universal link / app scheme)	✅	maps to UIApplication.open; opens another installed app
launchUrl in-app browser (inAppBrowserView / inAppWebView)	⚠️ falls back	no SFSafariViewController on tvOS — supportsMode returns false, and a launch requested with an in-app mode falls back to an external launch (the same fallback macOS/Windows/Linux make) rather than throwing
closeWebView	❌ (no-op)	nothing to close — there is no in-app browser

Because there is no browser, a plain http(s) URL only opens if another installed app claims it (universal link / app URL scheme). Note that on tvOS canLaunchUrl can return true for a web URL even when nothing will actually handle it, so rely on the boolean returned by launchUrl rather than gating on canLaunchUrl alone. Every launch mode — platformDefault, and the in-app browser modes — resolves to an external launch on tvOS (the iOS implementation opens web URLs in-app instead).

Status

Platform	Implemented	Verified
Apple TV simulator (appletvsimulator)	yes	✅ builds (arm64); on a running Apple TV 4K sim all four channels round-trip (no MissingPluginException), and a real external launch of a registered app URL scheme returns true and is delivered to the target (UIApplication.open hands off)
Apple TV (appletvos)	yes	✅ verified on a physical Apple TV 4K (release/AOT) — launchUrl opened the App Store (a real cross-app hand-off via UIApplication.open)

License

The FlutterTV Authors under a BSD-3-Clause license. See LICENSE for the full text.