Live Channels

HometownLive provides four dedicated streaming channels — Channel 1 through Channel 4. Each channel carries its own HLS stream delivered from dallas.tkdsstream.com. Channels appear in the viewer navigation under Live TV & RADIO.

Feeds Console

The Feeds Console shows real-time status for all four stream channels.

Location: Sidebar → Channel Console → Manage Channels/Feeds Console (/admin/restreams)

The console displays the following columns for each channel:

Column	Description
Feed Name	The name of the channel.
Status	Current state: finished, live, or idle.
Start Time	When the current or most recent stream started.
Duration (Min)	How long the stream has been running in minutes.
Endpoints	Number of active output destinations.
Resolution	Stream video resolution (e.g., 1080p).
Bitrate (Mbps)	Current stream bitrate in megabits per second.
Viewers	Number of active viewers on this channel.
Data Received (MB)	Total data ingested for the current stream session.
Actions	View Stream button to open the live stream preview.

Click Refresh Data to update the status of all channels.

Tip: Use the Feeds Console during a broadcast to confirm the stream is live and viewers are connecting.

Managing Channels

Editing a Channel

1. In the sidebar, go to Live TV & RADIO → TV/Radio Channel (/admin/live_tv).
2. Find the channel you want to edit and click its edit icon.

3. Update the fields as needed:

Field	Type	Description
Channel Name	Text	Display name shown to viewers.
Description	Textarea	Short description of the channel.
Access	Select	Free or Paid.
Category	Select	TV/Radio category (e.g., LIVE TV).
Status	Select	Active or Inactive.
Subscription Packages	Multi-select	Packages that include access to this channel.
Roku	Toggle	Enable or disable Roku app listing for this channel.
Auto-Update Image	Toggle	Automatically update the channel thumbnail from the stream.
Stream Name	Text	Internal stream identifier.
URL Type	Select	HLS/m3u8, MPEG-DASH, YouTube, Vimeo, MP3, or Embed Code.
Feed Channel	Select	Choose Channel 1–4 to link this channel to the TKDS stream infrastructure.
Playout Channel	Select	Optional — links to a Simple Playout channel for automated programming.
Channel URL	Text	Primary stream URL.
URL 2 / URL 3	Text	Backup stream URLs for failover.
Embed Code	Textarea	HTML embed code (only used when URL Type is Embed Code).
Thumbnail	Image upload	Channel artwork image displayed to viewers.
Stream ID	Text	Required. Unique stream identifier for this channel.
SEO Title	Text	Page title used by search engines.
SEO Description	Text	Meta description for search engine results.
SEO Keywords	Text	Comma-separated keywords for search indexing.

4. Click Save to apply your changes.

Note: The Feed Channel field (Channel 1–4) must match the stream being ingested at dallas.tkdsstream.com. Selecting the wrong channel will result in a blank or mismatched stream.

Channel Console / Channel Hub

The Channel Hub provides advanced feed management capabilities beyond the standard channel list.

Location: Sidebar → Channel Console → Channel Hub (/admin/channel-hub)

Note: The Channel Hub may take longer to load than other admin pages. Allow a few seconds for the interface to fully initialize.

PiPELiNE Feeds

PiPELiNE is a multi-destination restreaming service. It allows you to send a single stream to multiple platforms simultaneously (e.g., HometownLive and YouTube at the same time).

Location: Sidebar → Channel Console → PiPELiNE Feeds (/admin/pipelines)

Warning: PiPELiNE requires separate service activation. The feature will not function until it is enabled for your account. Contact HometownLive at https://platform.hometownlive.tv/page/contact-us to enable PiPELiNE.

Simple Playout

Simple Playout lets you build automated playlist-based programming for a channel. Instead of a live stream, the channel plays a sequence of videos on a schedule.

Location: Sidebar → Channel Console → Simple Playout (/admin/playout)

The Simple Playout page shows summary stats at the top:

Stat	Description
Total Channels	Number of playout channels configured.
Broadcasting	Channels currently playing out content.
Active Channels	Channels in an active state.
Total Videos	Total videos across all playout channels.

The list view shows each playout channel with these columns:

Column	Description
Channel Name	Name of the playout channel.
Playout Key	Unique identifier for this playout channel.
Status	Enabled or disabled.
Current Status	Real-time playback state.
Videos	Number of videos in the playlist.
Duration	Total runtime of all videos in the playlist.
Viewers	Current viewers on this playout channel.
Created	Date the playout channel was created.

TV Guide

The TV Guide lets you schedule upcoming programs on your channels so viewers can see what is coming up.

Location: Sidebar → MEDIA → Guide (/admin/guide)

To add a program to the guide:

1. Click Add New Program.
2. Fill in the program details:

Field	Type	Description
Channel	Select	The channel this program will air on.
Date	Date picker	The date of the scheduled program.
Program Image	Image upload	Thumbnail artwork for the guide listing.
Program Title	Text	Name of the program as shown in the guide.
Time	Time picker	Start time of the program.
Paid Status	Select	Free or Paid.
Frequency	Select	One-time, daily, weekly, etc.

3. Click Save to publish the program to the guide.

Viewer Experience

Channels appear in the viewer navigation under Live TV & RADIO. Viewers click a channel card to open the stream. The player loads automatically when a stream is active.

Tip: Set channel Status to Inactive when a channel is not in use. This prevents viewers from seeing a blank or error screen on channels that are not currently broadcasting.