M3U IPTV player: understand M3U8 and XMLTV, then connect them to Nani
An M3U IPTV player opens a playlist supplied by your own service: a text document that points to channels or titles. M3U and M3U8 URLs are, alongside Xtream, one of the two source types Nani accepts.
Received a long address to paste, perhaps with a second URL for the TV guide? This page helps you identify M3U, M3U8 and XMLTV, then choose the right connection method.
You connect that URL to Nani. Nani reads your own source, then organises live TV, films and series across Web, Android and Android TV.
- Plain-text playlist
- Playlist URL
- M3U8 or HLS
- Optional XMLTV guide
- Supported source
Your playlist says what to play. Nani organises how you find it.
Nani uses the playlist from your own service to organise its content and preserve your bearings across screens.
- 01 · Source
Your M3U or M3U8 URL
A playlist supplied by your service, sometimes paired with an XMLTV address for the guide.
- 02 · Organisation
Nani makes the list browsable
Live TV, films and series are grouped in an interface designed to find content quickly.
- 03 · Continuity
Your bearings follow the account
Web, Android and Android TV share the same organisation, with separate profiles and progress.
What an M3U playlist contains
A playlist is a text file. You can open it and read it, and it contains no video at all.
Text, not pictures
Each entry gives a name and an address. The programmes themselves stay on your service’s servers.
One entry per channel
One line describes the channel, its name and sometimes its logo and group, and the next line gives the address of its stream.
Often very long
An IPTV playlist can run to several thousand entries. Grouping them and making them browsable is the player’s job.
Supplied by your service
Usually as a URL, which the player rereads to know the current list. Nani publishes none.
M3U, M3U8 and HLS streams
The .m3u8 extension was historically associated with UTF-8 playlists, but it is also used for HLS playlists. The extension alone does not reveal the file’s exact purpose.
M3U8 historically signals UTF-8
This encoding represents accents and non-Latin alphabets correctly. In current use, however, the extension alone does not guarantee what the file contains.
But .m3u8 also serves HLS
In an HLS stream, an .m3u8 file describes the segments of a single programme and its quality variants. Same extension, entirely different job.
How to tell them apart
A channel playlist lists channel names. An HLS manifest describes one video stream and nothing else.
What Nani accepts
Nani uses the channel playlist your service hands you as a source, not a manifest internal to a single stream.
XMLTV, the guide that completes the playlist
XMLTV answers a different question than the playlist. One says where the channels are, the other says what is on them.
A guide format, not a video one
XMLTV is an XML format that carries schedules, titles and programme descriptions.
A separate address
When a service supplies one, it is a second address, distinct from the playlist’s.
Optional
A playlist works without XMLTV. The guide adds comfort, it does not gate playback.
Optional in Nani
You can pair your M3U playlist with an XMLTV source to enrich the programme guide.
M3U, M3U8, XMLTV or Xtream: what does each one do?
These names often appear in the same message, but they describe different things. Use this table to identify what your service sent you.
Your playlist becomes a Nani experience
- M3U / M3U8 playlist
- https://example-service.test/playlist.m3u8
- XMLTV guide · optional
- https://example-service.test/guide.xml
| Format | What it carries | What you receive |
|---|---|---|
| M3U | A list of media addresses, with names and sometimes groups or logos. | A playlist URL, often a long one. |
| M3U8 | A playlist historically encoded in UTF-8, or an HLS manifest depending on its contents. | A URL that often ends in .m3u8. |
| XMLTV | Schedules, titles and descriptions for the programme guide. | A second URL, separate from the playlist. |
| Xtream | The catalogue exposed by the service through an account-based connection. | A server URL, username and password. |
Reading what your service gave you
Four checks before connecting your playlist to Nani.
Single out the addresses you received
A playlist arrives as one long URL, often ending in .m3u or .m3u8. Some services add a second one, reserved for the guide.
Look at the extension
.m3u and .m3u8 usually name a playlist, and .m3u8 also names HLS manifests. The extension alone settles nothing: Nani reads the Source from its content and the context it supports.
Do not confuse the playlist with the guide
The guide address often carries xmltv or epg in it. It does not replace the playlist and is not enough to watch anything.
Keep the addresses exactly as they are
A playlist URL often carries your username and access key. Retyping it from memory or trimming it makes it useless, and sharing it means sharing your access.
Nani supplies neither playlists nor channels.
M3U, M3U8 and XMLTV are open formats used by many services. Nani is a player: it publishes no playlist, sells no subscription and hosts no content. Both the playlist and the guide come from the service you chose and signed up for yourself.
RFC 8216 describes HLS playlists as UTF-8 text files and specifies the .m3u8 and .m3u extensions. This explains why an .m3u8 address may refer to something other than a channel list. Read RFC 8216
See all featuresFrequently asked questions about M3U, M3U8 and XMLTV
What is an M3U playlist?+
A text file listing entries: for each one, a name and the address of its stream. It contains no video.
What is the difference between M3U and M3U8?+
M3U8 is the same playlist encoded in UTF-8, which lets accents and non-Latin alphabets be written correctly. Careful: an address ending in .m3u8 is also commonly used to describe an HLS video stream.
What is XMLTV?+
An XML format that carries a programme guide: schedules, titles, descriptions. It is not a video source.
Do I need XMLTV?+
No. A playlist works without a guide; XMLTV adds programme information when a source supplies it.
Can I connect an M3U playlist to Nani?+
Yes. M3U and M3U8 are accepted alongside Xtream credentials. The playlist must come from your own service.
What player do I need for an M3U IPTV playlist?+
You need a player that accepts M3U or M3U8 URLs and the stream types referenced by the playlist. Nani accepts this source.
Can I use the same M3U playlist on all my screens with Nani?+
Yes. The same source is linked to your Nani account across Web, Android and Android TV, with separate profiles and viewing progress.
Is a playlist URL sensitive?+
Often, yes: it frequently carries your username and access key. Sharing it means sharing your access to the service.
Connect your playlist to Nani.
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