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This guide shows how to implement bookmarking using the IMA DAI SDK
when using Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) for video-on-demand (VOD) streams.
This assumes a working IMA DAI implementation, such as the one presented in
Get Started.
What is bookmarking?
Bookmarking is the ability to save and then return to a specific point
in the content stream. Suppose a user watches five minutes of content,
leaves the video stream, and then returns to it. Bookmarking saves the
user's position in the stream so the stream can pick up from where it
left off, providing a seamless experience to the viewer.
DAI bookmarking under the hood
When bookmarking a DAI stream, you must record the stream id and time
when the user leaves the video. When the user returns, re-request the
stream and seek to the saved time. Since each instance of the requested
stream can have ad breaks of different durations simply saving the stream
time won't work. What you really want to do is continue from the same
content time.
Conversion methods to the rescue
The IMA DAI SDK provides a pair of methods to request the content time
for a given stream time and the stream time for a given content
time. Using these conversion methods you can store the bookmarked
content time and then seek to the corresponding stream time in
the new instance of the stream. Here's the approach, including a link
to a sample app that shows a working bookmarking implementation.
Saving bookmarks
Save a bookmark when the Activity is paused.
Saves the current time as a bookmark in the current video.
Function saveBookmarkTime(player as Object, streamManager as Object) as Void
m.videos[player.video.index].bookmarkTime =
streamManager.getContentTime(player.currentTime * 1000)
End Function
Loading bookmarks
Load the bookmark when re-requesting a stream. It's part of implementing
the VideoStreamPlayer interface.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-20 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis guide explains how to implement bookmarking in video-on-demand (VOD) streams using the IMA DAI SDK for Roku, allowing users to resume playback from where they left off.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eBookmarking with DAI involves saving the content time, not just the stream time, to ensure accurate resumption due to potential ad break variations.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe IMA DAI SDK provides methods to convert between stream time and content time, enabling the storage and retrieval of bookmarks based on content progress.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eDevelopers can implement bookmarking by saving the content time when the video is paused and retrieving it to seek to the corresponding stream time when the stream is reloaded.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eA sample app demonstrating a working bookmarking implementation is available on GitHub for reference and further exploration.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["This guide shows how to implement bookmarking using the IMA DAI SDK\nwhen using Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) for video-on-demand (VOD) streams.\nThis assumes a working IMA DAI implementation, such as the one presented in\n\n\n[Get Started](/interactive-media-ads/docs/sdks/roku/dai).\n\n\nWhat is bookmarking?\n\nBookmarking is the ability to save and then return to a specific point\nin the content stream. Suppose a user watches five minutes of content,\nleaves the video stream, and then returns to it. Bookmarking saves the\nuser's position in the stream so the stream can pick up from where it\nleft off, providing a seamless experience to the viewer.\n\nDAI bookmarking under the hood\n\nWhen bookmarking a DAI stream, you must record the stream id and time\nwhen the user leaves the video. When the user returns, re-request the\nstream and seek to the saved time. Since each instance of the requested\nstream can have ad breaks of different durations simply saving the stream\ntime won't work. What you really want to do is continue from the same\n**content time**.\n\nConversion methods to the rescue\n\nThe IMA DAI SDK provides a pair of methods to request the **content time**\nfor a given **stream time** and the **stream time** for a given **content\ntime** . Using these conversion methods you can store the bookmarked\n**content time** and then seek to the corresponding **stream time** in\nthe new instance of the stream. Here's the approach, including a link\nto a sample app that shows a working bookmarking implementation.\n\nSaving bookmarks\n\nSave a bookmark when the Activity is paused. \n\n Saves the current time as a bookmark in the current video.\n Function saveBookmarkTime(player as Object, streamManager as Object) as Void\n m.videos[player.video.index].bookmarkTime =\n streamManager.getContentTime(player.currentTime * 1000)\n End Function\n\nLoading bookmarks\n\nLoad the bookmark when re-requesting a stream. It's part of implementing\nthe `VideoStreamPlayer` interface. \n\n player.loadUrl = Function(streamInfo as Object)\n ...\n If m.video.bookmarkTime \u003e 0\n streamTime = m.streamManager.getStreamTime(m.video.bookmarkTime)\n m.videoPlayer.seek(streamTime)\n End If\n End Function\n\nSample app\n\n[Sample app](//github.com/googleads/googleads-ima-roku-dai)"]]
