Twitter Announces Digits for tvOS to Simplify the App Login Process

Following in Facebook's footsteps, Twitter today announced plans to make some of its Fabric developer toolkit available for tvOS apps. Developers will be able to integrate Twitter's Digits feature into apps, allowing end users to securely sign into tvOS apps using SMS verification.

With Digits, customers can sign up for an app or service using a phone number with Digits providing a confirmation code used for verification purposes in lieu of a password, a feature that's likely to be handy on the new fourth-generation Apple TV. Entering lengthy passwords using the new Apple TV remote is a hassle and the Digits login feature will remove that pain point in apps that use it.

Using Digits' device authorization, your app on the Apple TV will show a short alphanumeric code. Your user then simply enters the code on digits.com/appletv via their laptop or smartphone to authorize the device to their account. Once that's done, the TV device receives a Digits session for the user's account which you can use to instantly identify your user and personalize their experience.

Along with Digits, developers can also integrate Twitter's data analysis service, Crashlytics, into apps to track install numbers and crash instances.

Last week, Facebook announced a Facebook SDK for tvOS, designed to allow developers to access Facebook Login, Share to Facebook, and Facebook Analytics for Apps. With Facebook login, customers can sign up for services and log into apps using a similar confirmation code system.