Apple TV and Prime Video Delivery Specs

Updated October 2026

What Apple and Amazon publish for film and TV masters: codecs, HDR, audio, captions and artwork, and how an independent title actually reaches each store in 2026.

What's Public and What Isn't

Both companies publish their technical specs openly. Apple's Video and Audio Asset Guide (version 5.3.19, September 2026) covers the transactional Apple TV app store, where films and episodes are bought and rented. Amazon's specs are on its Prime Video Slate support site, which the old Prime Video Direct help now redirects to. What isn't public: the specs for Apple TV+ and Amazon originals, the partner-specific requirements in a distribution deal, and the accounts you deliver through.

This guide covers the public specs as of October 2026. Netflix's are in the Netflix delivery specs guide.

How a Title Gets In

• Apple: all content is encoded and delivered by an Apple-approved encoding house. Without a direct deal with Apple, you work through an aggregator, and Apple pays the aggregator, which pays you. Apple's partner directory lists both, Filmhub and Bitmax among them.
• Amazon: Prime Video Direct is now the self-service part of Prime Video Slate, and Amazon says self-service is by invitation only: it isn't taking new rent or buy submissions from providers without an existing account, and doesn't accept unsolicited titles for Prime (SVOD) at all. New titles go through an aggregator or one of its fulfillment vendors.

So for most independent films, the aggregator sets the deliverable list and checks it against these specs. The aggregator delivery guide covers that step.

Sources: Apple: encoding houses and aggregators, Prime Video: licensing consideration and title review

Apple TV App: Film Masters

Apple takes QuickTime ProRes files, not IMF. The film profiles in the asset guide:

HD video: ProRes 422 HQ, 4444 or 4444 XQ, 1920×1080, about 220 Mbit/s expected for 422 HQ (ProRes's rate at about 30 fps), BT.709. Native 23.976, 24, 25 or 30 fps for progressive and film-sourced material.
4K: 3840×2160 or 4096×2160 (send crop values for DCI 4K), progressive at 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97 or 30 fps. Apple expects about 880 Mbit/s for 422 HQ, 1,320 for 4444 and 2,000 for 4444 XQ, which are ProRes's rates at about 30 fps; at 24 fps they are lower.
HDR: Dolby Vision or HDR10, as a second source matching the SDR master frame for frame. Dolby Vision: one 12-bit ProRes 4444 or 4444 XQ file in PQ, P3-D65 or BT.2020, plus a CM v2.9 or v4.0 metadata XML. HDR10: the same file with ST 2086 and MaxCLL/MaxFALL values.
Picture rules: At least one black frame at the start and end. No upscaled SD. No FBI, rating or release-date cards, QR codes, URLs or promotional bumpers.
Audio: LPCM, 16- or 24-bit, at least 48 kHz, every channel labeled. Stereo always; 5.1 or 7.1 as well wherever it exists in any other market.
Dolby Atmos: BWF ADM file, 24-bit, 48 kHz, mixed in a room of at least 7.1.4, with dialogue loudness between −31 and −10 LKFS (ideally −30 to −18), measured on a 5.1 render
Captions: SCC (EIA-608) at 29.97 timecode whatever the video rate. Required on US feature deliveries unless an exemption applies.
Subtitles: iTT (Apple's TTML subset) for subtitles, SDH and forced subtitles
Textless: No separate textless master required, but every source must declare whether it carries burned-in text
Preview: One trailer (preview) asset per film, with a worldwide trailer required; same aspect ratio as the feature, no rating or release-date tags
Artwork: 2:3 key art with the title, at least 2000×3000; 16:9 cover art at least 1920×1080, 3840×2160 preferred

Sources: Apple Video and Audio Asset Guide (v5.3.19), Apple Transactional Film Specification (v5.3.22)

Prime Video: Mezzanine Files

Amazon calls the master a mezzanine file. Self-service accounts are limited to HD; 4K and HDR are for contract partners.

HD video: At least 1280 wide or 720 high. ProRes 422 HQ in MOV, MPEG-2 at 50 Mbit/s or more, or H.264 at 20 Mbit/s or more. Rec. 709.
4K UHD: ProRes 422 HQ in MOV, at least 250 Mbit/s, 10-bit, progressive at 23.976 to 60 fps. Contract partners only, not self-service.
HDR: HDR10 ("Open HDR"), with a matching SDR source of the same resolution, conform and running time. Dolby Vision is not on the public page.
Rejected: MKV; TS with AC-3; MOV with any codec except ProRes; ProRes 4444 XQ; VOB; WMV; variable frame rate; telecined or upscaled sources
Picture rules: Program only: strip bars and tone, slates, ad blacks and any textless material appended after the program. No logos or calls to other sites.
Audio: One language per file, fully mixed program tracks only (no M&E or MOS tracks). 5.1 mapped L, R, C, LFE, Ls, Rs; 8 channels as 5.1 plus stereo.
Timed text: SCC, SRT, DFXP/TTML, SMPTE-TT, iTT, EBU STL or Lambda Cap (not WebVTT). English captions required for every US title, starting at a 00:00 offset.
Artwork: Cover art 16:9 at 3840×2160, box art 3:4 at 1920×2560, poster 2:3 at 2000×3000, hero 16:9 without text; JPG or PNG, RGB, 10 MB maximum

Sources: video requirements (updated August 2026), audio, timed text, artwork

Apple and Amazon Side by Side

	Apple TV app	Prime Video
Master codec	ProRes 422 HQ, 4444 or 4444 XQ	ProRes 422 HQ (MPEG-2 or H.264 for HD)
HDR	Dolby Vision or HDR10	HDR10 on the public page
Closed captions	SCC at 29.97	SCC, SRT, TTML and others
Subtitles	iTT	Same list as captions
M&E in the master	Labeled audio tracks	Not allowed: program mixes only
How you get in	Aggregator or direct deal, via an Apple-approved encoding house	Aggregator or fulfillment vendor; self-service is invitation only

The difference that catches people: Amazon wants the trailer and any textless material as separate deliveries, never tacked onto the end of the main file, and only full mixes in the audio tracks. The caption formats differ too; the caption and subtitle formats guide explains SCC, iTT and the rest.

Sizing the Master

Apple's rates in the asset guide match ProRes at about 30 fps. A 24 fps feature runs lower, so size it from Apple's ProRes white paper rates for your frame rate. Amazon's 250 Mbit/s is a floor, not a target.

File size from bit rate and running time

GB = Mbit/s × seconds ÷ 8,000

Decimal gigabytes (1 GB = 8,000 megabits), as drive makers count.

Example: A 90-minute UHD feature at 24 fps in ProRes 422 HQ (707 Mbit/s)

Calculation:: 707 × 5,400 ÷ 8,000
Result:: 477 GB (about 119 GB in HD at 176 Mbit/s)

An HDR delivery to Apple is a second, 12-bit 4444 file: at 24 fps that runs at about 1,061 Mbit/s, another 716 GB for the same 90 minutes. The same figures are used in the aggregator delivery guide. Check yours in Data & Storage, then plan the transfer in Upload Time. The free bitrate calculator and upload time calculator run the same sums in your browser.

Before You Hand Over the Files

Ask your aggregator which store and which spec version the delivery is for
Export ProRes 422 HQ at the native frame rate; nothing upscaled, telecined or variable-rate
Grade HDR first and derive the SDR, then check the two match frame for frame
Deliver stereo plus any surround mix that exists; keep M&E out of Amazon program files
Make SCC captions for Apple and check Amazon's format list before converting
Cut a trailer that matches the feature's aspect ratio, with no rating or date cards
Prepare artwork at every size each store lists, title included

Questions

What video format does Apple require for the Apple TV app?

QuickTime files in ProRes 422 HQ, 4444 or 4444 XQ, at the native frame rate: 1920×1080 for HD, and 3840×2160 or 4096×2160 for 4K. Apple's public asset guide has no IMF profile.

Does Apple require Dolby Vision?

No. Apple accepts Dolby Vision or HDR10, delivered as a second source that matches the SDR master frame for frame: a 12-bit ProRes 4444 or 4444 XQ file in PQ, with a Dolby Vision metadata file or HDR10 mastering values.

Can I upload a film to Prime Video Direct?

Amazon says Prime Video Direct, now the self-service part of Prime Video Slate, is by invitation only: it isn't taking new rent or buy submissions from providers without an account, and doesn't accept unsolicited titles for Prime. New titles go through an aggregator or one of its fulfillment vendors.

How do independent filmmakers get onto the Apple TV app?

Through an aggregator, unless you have a direct deal with Apple. Apple says all content is encoded and delivered by an Apple-approved encoding house, and pays the aggregator, which pays you.

What caption formats do Apple and Amazon accept?

Apple takes closed captions as SCC at 29.97 timecode and subtitles and SDH as iTT. Amazon takes SCC, SRT, DFXP/TTML, SMPTE-TT, iTT, EBU STL and Lambda Cap, but not WebVTT.