Playlists
Playlists are groups of videos played in sequence. Use them for course modules, tutorial series, chapter sequences, or any content that has a natural order.
Playlists were introduced and are fully supported in version 1.1.0.
Creating a playlist
Section titled “Creating a playlist”Go to MediaShield > Playlists and click Add New Playlist.
Give the playlist a title, then add videos using the video picker. You can drag and drop to set the order.
Playlist settings:
Autoplay - When on, the next video starts automatically when the current one ends.
Countdown - How many seconds to wait between videos when autoplay is on. Default is 5 seconds. A countdown overlay shows the viewer that the next video is about to start.
Loop - When the last video in the playlist ends, start from the first video again.
Shuffle - Play the videos in a random order instead of the set order.
Click Save when done.
Embedding a playlist
Section titled “Embedding a playlist”You have two options:
Shortcode
Section titled “Shortcode”[mediashield_playlist id=15]Replace 15 with your playlist’s ID. The ID appears in the URL when editing the playlist (post=15).
Gutenberg block
Section titled “Gutenberg block”In the block inserter, search for MediaShield Playlist. The block opens a playlist picker.
Both embedding methods produce identical output.
How playlists work with protection
Section titled “How playlists work with protection”Every video inside a playlist runs through the same protection layer as a standalone embed:
- The watermark is applied per-video based on each video’s protection level
- Session tracking runs per video (each video in the playlist generates its own session record)
- Milestones are tracked per video
- Access control is checked per video - if a viewer doesn’t have permission for one video in the playlist, that video is blocked but others continue to work
Playlist thumbnails
Section titled “Playlist thumbnails”Set a Featured Image on the playlist post to use as the playlist thumbnail in any listing. Individual video thumbnails are shown in the playlist player according to each video’s own Featured Image.
Reordering videos
Section titled “Reordering videos”Open the playlist edit screen and drag the videos into the desired order. Save. The new order takes effect immediately for all future playback.