Dish opens up the Hopper DVR to help developers build smarter, more useful TV apps

Smartphones and tablets have endlessly customizable interfaces, but sadly we're usually stuck at the mercy of remote controls that have no awareness of context when we watch TV. It looks like Dish is trying to change that — the company has just opened up the APIs for its Hopper commercial-skipping DVR platform to "select" mobile app developers.

Essentially, this means that some third-party app developers will be able to build controls for the Hopper right into their apps, something Dish is hoping will make the rapidly-proliferating "second screen" app trend more useful for its customers. Imagine you're an MLB junky, flipping between different games and keeping up with stats using the official MLB app — that process could get a lot easier if you were able to control your TV without even having to leave the app, to say nothing of having to pick up the old remote.