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How to Auto-Play videos with Arreya

Getting videos to Auto-Play can be a lot harder than it seems. Many browsers have implemented vague and complex metrics for determining when a video can and can’t be auto-played, with or without sound, from a website and this can cause headaches when attempting to get it to work with Arreya. Here’s a few different ways:

Install Arreya as a PWA

Installing Arreya as a Progressive Web App (PWA) bypasses almost all browsers restrictions on auto-play. This is the simplest and fastest way to get your browser videos to auto-play every time. Here’s how to install a PWA on each type of device:

How to install a PWA with a Chrome OS Device

How to install a PWA with an Android Device

How to install a PWA with an iOS Device

Auto-Play with Browsers

The good news is that Chrome and most browsers allow for video auto-play without sound by default. If you want sound to play, that’s when the issue becomes more complicated. Most browsers operate off of three different metrics to allow video auto-play with sound:

  1. The user has interacted with the website (click, ect…)
  2. The user has passed a Media Engagement Index(MEI) threshold
  3. The website has been added to home screen on mobile or the PWA has been installed on desktop devices

These metrics are why we recommend the installation of the PWA first and foremost. If this is not possible the auto-play with sound becomes much more limited in possibility. On interactive signage you could put an auto-play video with sound on a second page after a user has touched the screen, thereby fulfilling the first metric of interacting with the website. Relying on the MEI is not recommended as it changes often and what might auto-play one day may not auto-play at some point in the future.

Troubleshooting

If you have Arreya installed as a PWA and you are still having issue with auto-playing videos with sound or maybe even having issues getting a video to imbed correctly, here are some steps to consider:

    1. The most reliable method of getting a video imbedded and to autoplay is by uploading the file to our Media Library in the Arreya Content Suite. This eliminates any possibility of the source of the video not having the permissions necessary to auto-play appropriately.
    2. If the video is on YouTube, use the YouTube widget. Simply ensure that auto-play is on and change any other settings to match your needs.
    3. If the video is on a different video hosting site, you can use the Website Widget to pull the video in quickly. Many sites do not have the video set to auto-play by default and additional permissions must be added in to the end of the URL in order to have it auto-play. The exact way to put these into the URL varies from site to site and you may have to Google “How to auto-play from…” depending on the site. Here are some examples from popular YouTube alternatives:
      • Vimeo: Add &autoplay=1 for auto-play and &loop=1 to loop. An example URL might look like:
        https://player.vimeo.com/video/EXAMPLE?color=bc1c37&portrait=0&autoplay=1&loop=1
      • MyVRSpot: Add &autostart=true for autoplay and &loop=true to loop the video. An example URL might look like :
        https://live.myvrspot.com/iframe?v=XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX&autostart=true&loop=true

Adding Videos to your Arreya Presentation

  1. Upload your Video file to the Media Library (see here)
  2. In your Presentation, click on 
  3. In your “Choose Media” screen, select the Video file you want to add
  4. Move the video to where you are wanting it to appear in your presentation
  5. Modify the picture however you are wanting using the controls on the bottom of the Editor