How do I replace an existing channel with a new channel from a different development team?

Issue

Transferring ownership of channel to another developer. 

Replacing existing channel with new channel. 

Environment

SDK

Answer

If you'd like to transfer your existing channel to a new development team that uses a different developer account, you can review additional information below. 

Transferring a free/AVOD channel:

If your channel does not offer any in-channel products (i.e. is free or AVOD), submit a ticket to Partner Success with the following information:

• Channel ID of the channel you'd like to transfer to a new developer account
• Existing developer account
• New developer account (with that user CC'd on the ticket)

Transferring a SVOD/TVOD channel (i.e. channels with in-channel products):

In-channel products are tied to a developer account, not individual channels, which means transferring an SVOD/TVOD channel will deactivate existing users' subscriptions purchased via Roku Pay upon renewal. 

The only option for maintaining your existing subscriber base and transferring control of an SVOD/TVOD channel is:

1. Change the email associated with your developer account to the new desired email so all products stay under the same original account (but just with a new email address) OR
2. Grant the new developer Administrator access to the channel via user roles. (This works particularly well if the original developer account is associated with the content provider and not a third-party developer.)

Replacing old channel with package from new development team:

Once you've gained access to the channel using one of the transfer methods above, upload the channel package and submit for publishing in the developer portal.

After uploading the package and passing Static Analysis and Certification Testing, you will be able to schedule your publishing job. Once the update is published, existing users will see the updated channel build installed on their device like any other channel update. 

Additional Resources

Note: If you're using a new developer ID to package an SVOD/TVOD channel, all users will be automatically logged out and forced to reauthenticate once your channel update is published. This is why it's particularly important to save this information for all future package submissions. 

How do I fix the error: Developer id of submitted package does not match developer id of previously submitted package.