Catch The Show Getting Started: APIs & SDKs (2026)

Getting started overview

Integrating Catch The Show into an application involves a sequence of steps designed to enable quick development and deployment of live and on-demand video functionalities. The platform provides a set of APIs and SDKs for managing video streams, interactive elements, and storage. Developers typically begin by creating an account, which grants access to a dashboard for managing projects and obtaining API credentials. After securing these credentials, a common next step is to make a foundational API call, such as creating a new live stream or uploading a video asset, to verify the setup.

Catch The Show supports various programming languages through its official SDKs, including JavaScript, Python, Go, and Ruby, which abstract much of the direct API interaction. For direct HTTP requests, the API is RESTful, typically communicating with JSON payloads over HTTPS, a standard practice for web APIs as described by the IETF HTTP/1.1 specification. Security is managed via API keys, which are passed with each request for authentication.

The following table outlines the foundational steps for getting started with Catch The Show:

Create an account and get keys

To begin using Catch The Show, the first step is to create a developer account. This account provides access to the Catch The Show dashboard, where you can manage projects, monitor usage, and generate the necessary API credentials. A Developer Plan is available, offering 500 minutes of live streaming and 10 GB of storage free of charge, suitable for initial development and testing.

1. Navigate to the Catch The Show website: Go to catchtheshow.com.
2. Sign Up: Locate the 'Sign Up' or 'Get Started Free' button, typically found in the top right corner of the homepage.
3. Complete Registration: Follow the prompts to enter your email address, create a password, and agree to the terms of service. You may need to verify your email address.
4. Access the Dashboard: After successful registration and login, you will be directed to your Catch The Show developer dashboard.
5. Locate API Keys: Within the dashboard, navigate to the 'Settings' or 'API Keys' section. This is where your unique API Key and API Secret are generated and stored.
6. Copy Credentials: Securely copy both your API Key and API Secret. These are sensitive credentials and should be treated with the same care as passwords. They are used to authenticate your application's requests to the Catch The Show API.

It is best practice to store these keys securely, such as in environment variables, rather than hardcoding them directly into your application's source code, as recommended by security guidelines for API key management.

Your first request

After obtaining your API Key and API Secret, you can make your first API request to confirm your setup. This example demonstrates creating a live stream using the Catch The Show Live API. We will provide examples using both curl for a direct REST API call and the Python SDK.

Using the REST API with curl

This curl command creates a new live stream. Replace YOUR_API_KEY and YOUR_API_SECRET with your actual credentials.

curl -X POST \
  https://api.catchtheshow.com/v1/live/streams \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-CTS-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "X-CTS-API-Secret: YOUR_API_SECRET" \
  -d '{ "name": "My First Live Stream", "region": "us-east-1" }'

A successful response will return a JSON object containing details about the newly created stream, including its ID, RTMP ingest URL, and playback URL. For example:

{
  "id": "ls_abcdef1234567890",
  "name": "My First Live Stream",
  "status": "waiting",
  "rtmp_ingest_url": "rtmp://ingest.catchtheshow.com/live/ls_abcdef1234567890?key=YOUR_STREAM_KEY",
  "playback_url": "https://play.catchtheshow.com/live/ls_abcdef1234567890/index.m3u8",
  "created_at": "2026-05-29T10:00:00Z"
}

Using the Python SDK

First, install the Python SDK:

pip install catchtheshow-sdk-python

Then, use the following Python code to create a live stream. Remember to set your API key and secret as environment variables or replace the placeholders.

import os
from catchtheshow import CatchTheShowClient

api_key = os.environ.get("CTS_API_KEY")
api_secret = os.environ.get("CTS_API_SECRET")

if not api_key or not api_secret:
    raise ValueError("CTS_API_KEY and CTS_API_SECRET environment variables must be set.")

client = CatchTheShowClient(api_key=api_key, api_secret=api_secret)

try:
    stream_data = client.live.create_stream(
        name="My First Python Stream",
        region="us-east-1"
    )
    print("Live Stream Created Successfully:")
    print(f"  ID: {stream_data['id']}")
    print(f"  Ingest URL: {stream_data['rtmp_ingest_url']}")
    print(f"  Playback URL: {stream_data['playback_url']}")
except Exception as e:
    print(f"Error creating live stream: {e}")

Executing this Python script will produce similar output to the curl example, confirming the creation of the live stream and providing its details.

Common next steps

After successfully making your first API call, you can explore the broader capabilities of Catch The Show. Common next steps often involve integrating these video functionalities into a user interface and managing the video lifecycle.

• Integrate with a Video Player: Use the playback_url provided in the stream creation response to embed the live stream into a web or mobile application using standard video players. Popular choices include HTML5 <video> elements, YouTube Iframe Player API, or open-source players like Video.js.
• Start Streaming: To make the live stream visible, you'll need to send video content to the rtmp_ingest_url using streaming software (e.g., OBS Studio) or a custom application.
• Explore Video On Demand (VOD): Utilize the Video On Demand API to upload, transcode, and deliver pre-recorded videos. This typically involves creating a video asset and then uploading the media file.
• Implement Interactive Features: Catch The Show's Interactive Video API enables features like chat integration, polls, and real-time overlays. Review the documentation for specific endpoints and SDK methods.
• Webhooks for Events: Set up webhooks to receive notifications about important events, such as a stream starting or ending, video processing completion, or errors. This allows your application to react dynamically to changes in your video content's status. Catch The Show's webhook documentation provides details on configuration.
• Monitor Usage and Billing: Regularly check your dashboard to monitor API usage, stream minutes, and storage to stay within your plan's limits or manage billing for paid tiers.

Troubleshooting the first call

Encountering issues during your first API call is common. Here are some troubleshooting steps:

• Check API Key and Secret: Double-check that your X-CTS-API-Key and X-CTS-API-Secret headers or SDK credentials exactly match those from your Catch The Show dashboard. Typos or incorrect values will lead to authentication failures.
• Verify Endpoint URL: Ensure the API endpoint URL (e.g., https://api.catchtheshow.com/v1/live/streams) is correct and matches the version specified in the API reference.
• Content Type Header: For POST requests with JSON bodies, confirm that the Content-Type: application/json header is set correctly. Missing or incorrect content type headers can cause the API to reject the request body.
• Request Body Format: Validate that your JSON request body is well-formed and adheres to the expected schema for the specific endpoint. Minor syntax errors (e.g., missing commas, unquoted keys) can lead to parsing errors.
• Network Connectivity: Ensure your development environment has stable internet connectivity and is not blocked by a firewall from reaching api.catchtheshow.com.
• Error Messages: Pay close attention to the error messages returned by the API. They often provide specific details about what went wrong (e.g., "Invalid API Key", "Missing required parameter 'name'"). Consult the Catch The Show error codes documentation for more information.
• SDK Version: If using an SDK, ensure you have the latest version installed. Outdated SDKs might have bugs or lack support for recent API changes.
• Rate Limiting: While unlikely on a first call, be aware that APIs often have rate limits. Repeated failed attempts in a short period could temporarily block your IP address.
• Consult Documentation: Re-read the relevant section of the Catch The Show documentation, particularly the API reference for the specific endpoint you are trying to use.