wako add-on protocol

A reference for building add-ons that extend wako with catalogs, metadata, streams, and subtitles.

An add-on is a small HTTP service that wako talks to over the network. It exposes a JSON manifest describing what it can do, and a handful of endpoints that wako calls when the user browses, opens a media detail, or plays a video. There is no SDK to install and no framework to learn — any language that can serve JSON will do.

Users install an add-on by pasting its manifest URL inside wako, under Settings > Extensions. From that moment, the add-on contributes to the app the same way the built-in catalog does: its rows show up on the home screen, its streams appear next to the play button, its subtitles populate the language picker.

Compatible with existing add-on manifests

wako add-ons follow a JSON contract that is already widely deployed in the open-source media ecosystem. Most public add-ons can be pasted into wako and work immediately. You do not need to build something specific to wako — but you can, with a few wako-only fields documented in wako specifics.

How it works

Every add-on is reachable through a single base URL — the place where its manifest.json lives. wako derives every other request from that base.

HTTP

GET https://my-addon.example/manifest.json
GET https://my-addon.example/catalog/{type}/{id}.json
GET https://my-addon.example/catalog/{type}/{id}/{extra}.json
GET https://my-addon.example/meta/{type}/{id}.json
GET https://my-addon.example/stream/{type}/{id}.json
GET https://my-addon.example/subtitles/{type}/{id}.json
GET https://my-addon.example/subtitles/{type}/{id}/{extra}.json

Each response is a small JSON object — never HTML, never a stream of binary data. wako merges the responses of every installed add-on, applies the user's preferences (which add-ons are enabled, in which order), and renders the result.

Resources

An add-on declares which resources it supports in its manifest. wako only calls the endpoints you advertise.

catalog

Rows of media (poster grids on the home screen, search results).

meta

Full details for an item — synopsis, cast, episode list, posters.

stream

Playable links for a movie or episode (URL, external app, info-hash).

subtitles

Subtitle tracks for a video, optionally matched by file hash.

Where to start

Getting started→

Build a minimal add-on in a few minutes — the manifest, one endpoint, and an install URL.

Manifest→

The JSON document every add-on exposes at /manifest.json — name, resources, types, configuration.

Streams→

Return playable links: direct URLs, external apps, or torrent info-hashes.

Behavior hints→

Every flag wako reads from your responses, from bingeGroup to proxyHeaders.

One add-on, many devices

wako runs on iOS, Android, and Android TV. The same add-on URL works on every platform — there is no platform-specific manifest. Aim for responses that load quickly on a TV running on slow Wi-Fi, and keep timeouts in mind: wako gives an add-on 40 seconds for streams and 10 seconds for catalog and meta.