DocumentationAnalyticsStreaming media services guide

Originator

Last update: May 28, 2026

CREATED FOR:

  • Developer

This page covers data collection for the Originator variable. See Originator for the corresponding reporting dimension.

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The originator variable is the creator or production studio of the content (for example, "Warner Brothers", "Sony", or "Disney"). Use it to compare engagement across content owners or rights holders.

Property
Value
Context data variable
a.media.originator
XDM collection field
xdm.mediaCollection.sessionDetails.originator
Audience Manager trait
c_contextdata.a.media.originator
Required
No
Sent with
Session start, session close
Web SDK

Set originator inside xdm.mediaCollection.sessionDetails when calling sendEvent:

code language-javascript 
alloy("sendEvent", {
  xdm: {
    eventType: "media.sessionStart",
    mediaCollection: {
      sessionDetails: {
        originator: "Warner Brothers"
      },
      playhead: 0
    }
  }
});
iOS

Pass the originator as a metadata key in the HashMap argument to trackSessionStart. Use MediaConstants.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR.

code language-swift 
var metadata: [String: String] = [:]
metadata[MediaConstants.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR] = "Warner Brothers"

tracker.trackSessionStart(info: mediaObject, metadata: metadata)
Android

Pass the originator as a metadata key in the HashMap argument to trackSessionStart. Use MediaConstants.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR.

code language-kotlin 
val metadata = HashMap<String, String>()
metadata[MediaConstants.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR] = "Warner Brothers"

tracker.trackSessionStart(mediaInfo, metadata)
Roku

Use createMediaSession to set originator inside sessionDetails:

code language-brightscript 
m.aepSdk.createMediaSession({
    "xdm": {
        "eventType": "media.sessionStart",
        "mediaCollection": {
            "sessionDetails": {
                "originator": "Warner Brothers"
            },
            "playhead": 0
        }
    }
})
Media Edge API

Call the sessionStart endpoint with originator inside xdm.mediaCollection.sessionDetails:

code language-json 
{
  "events": [{
    "xdm": {
      "eventType": "media.sessionStart",
      "mediaCollection": {
        "sessionDetails": {
          "name": "video-123",
          "length": 128,
          "contentType": "vod",
          "playerName": "HTML5 Player",
          "channel": "Sports",
          "originator": "Warner Brothers"
        },
        "playhead": 0
      }
    }
  }]
}

Legacy implementation types (Analytics-only)

Media SDK JS 3.x

Pass the originator in the contextData object using ADB.Media.VideoMetadataKeys.Originator:

code language-javascript 
var contextData = {};
contextData[ADB.Media.VideoMetadataKeys.Originator] = "Warner Brothers";

tracker.trackSessionStart(mediaInfo, contextData);
Chromecast

Use ADBMobile.media.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR to set the originator in the StandardMediaMetadata property of the media object before calling trackSessionStart:

code language-javascript 
var mediaInfo = ADBMobile.media.createMediaObject("My Video", "video-123", 128,
  ADBMobile.media.StreamType.VOD, ADBMobile.media.MediaType.Video);
var standardMetadata = {};
standardMetadata[ADBMobile.media.VideoMetadataKeys.ORIGINATOR] = "Warner Brothers";
mediaInfo[ADBMobile.media.MediaObjectKey.StandardMediaMetadata] = standardMetadata;
ADBMobile.media.trackSessionStart(mediaInfo, null);
Media Collection API

Include media.originator in the params object:

code language-json 
{
  "playerTime": { "playhead": 0, "ts": 1699523820000 },
  "eventType": "sessionStart",
  "params": {
    "media.originator": "Warner Brothers"
  }
}

See the Media Collection API sessions reference for the full request structure.

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