CNN+ · Connected TV · Streaming
CNN+, built for the big screen.
Ricardo built the CNN+ OTT app for CNN, working with React Native and You.i Kit across Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV. The project brought his cross-platform application experience to a major news organization’s subscription streaming launch.
Ricardo’s engineering work for CNN
The product: a new destination for CNN programming
CNN+ launched in March 2022 with original live programs and an on-demand library of series and films. It offered a separate programming lineup from CNN’s cable channel, with Interview Club adding a way for subscribers to submit questions to guests.
The engineering: one foundation across TV platforms
Ricardo’s work centered on the OTT application: a shared React Native codebase using You.i Kit across Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV. Reusing the application foundation across television platforms was the central delivery approach. These are the platforms in his project scope, not a claim that each was available on the service’s first day.
The experience: discovery on the big screen
CNN’s published product imagery shows featured programs, rows of titles, and watch and information actions on television, alongside the service’s desktop and mobile experiences. The images provide product context; Ricardo’s contribution described here is the connected-TV application.
A shipped product, now part of CNN’s history
CNN+ launched on March 29, 2022 and was discontinued the following month. This case study documents the engineering work on that original service. CNN All Access, introduced in October 2025, is a later offering.
Inside the product
CNN+ archive · Product artwork credited to CNN · CNN+ coverage in Next TV
Product context & sources
Published coverage provides product history and imagery. Engineering responsibilities are based on Ricardo’s account of his work.
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