Senior Product Software Engineer (Swift)

ESPN; Glendale (CA); On-site; USD 144,000 - 193,000; Full time

Job summary

ESPN is seeking a Senior Product Software Engineer for the Apple ecosystem in Glendale, CA. You will build a feature-rich streaming playback library and design a layered architecture that spans Disney's direct-to-consumer brands.

You will collaborate with product managers, designers, engineers, and content creators to deliver a best-in-class streaming experience, while aligning with design and technical constraints.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in iOS development with Swift.
• 5+ years implementing complex UI with UIKit or SwiftUI.
• 3+ years in agile processes.
• Experience in full software lifecycle.
• Knowledge of MVC or MVVM patterns.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement features integrating with Disney media services.
• Collaborative API design with backend and frontend teams.
• Research and development for media playback experiences and testing.
• Participate in project estimation and planning.
• Troubleshoot issues across platforms.
• Collaborate in small and large teams; work independently.
• Specialize in Apple technologies to build a world-class app.

Skills

iOS development

Swift

Agile

Object Oriented Programming

Communication

Education

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science

Tools

UIKit

SwiftUI

AVKit

AVFoundation

Xcode

Job description

Department Overview

Technology is at the heart of Disney’s past, present, and future. Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology is a global organization of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, data scientists, and more – all working to build and advance the technological backbone for Disney’s media business globally.

Department Overview

Technology is at the heart of Disney’s past, present, and future. Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology is a global organization of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, data scientists, and more – all working to build and advance the technological backbone for Disney’s media business globally. The team marries technology with creativity to build world‑class products, enhance storytelling, and drive velocity, innovation, and scalability for our businesses. We are Storytellers and Innovators. Creators and Builders. Entertainers and Engineers. We work with every part of The Walt Disney Company’s media portfolio to advance the technological foundation and consumer media touch points serving millions of people around the world. Here are a few reasons why we think you’d love working here: Building the future of Disney’s media: Our Technologists are designing and building the products and platforms that will power our media, advertising, and distribution businesses for years to come. Reach, Scale & Impact: More than ever, Disney’s technology and products serve as a signature doorway for fans’ connections with the company’s brands and stories. Disney+. Hulu. ESPN. ABC. ABC News…and many more. These products and brands – and the unmatched stories, storytellers, and events they carry – matter to millions of people globally. Innovation: We develop and implement groundbreaking products and techniques that shape industry norms, and solve complex and distinctive technical problems. Product Engineering is a unified team responsible for the engineering of Disney Entertainment & ESPN digital and streaming products and platforms. This includes product engineering, media engineering, quality assurance, engineering behind personalization, commerce, lifecycle, and identity.

Job Summary

The Disney Media Player Engineering team mission is to design video streaming playback solutions in collaboration with encoding, packaging, and delivery teams to optimize the Disney streaming technology stack for the best streaming experience possible on all platforms. Our team is seeking someone who can fill the role of a Senior Product Software Engineer to create a feature rich standard streaming media playback library on Apple devices. Our intention is to design and develop a layered architecture for media playback which can span all the Disney direct-to-consumer brands like Disney+, ESPN, ABC News, and Hulu. Your focus will be on collaborating with media playback teams on other platforms to ensure a consistent software architecture which delivers a best‑in‑class streaming experience for your viewers while providing a foundation for media playback innovation at Disney. This is a hands‑on engineering position for the Apple Ecosystem in Objective‑C/SWIFT. Based on your experience, you will work a cross‑functional team of Product Managers, Designers, Engineers, Web Developers, and Content Creators to conceptualize and develop solutions that are shared across all Disney experiences. You are a person who enjoys working with other teams and technologies to understand their constraints. You enjoy the challenges presented by difficult problems and take pride in finding solutions which successfully thread the needle between design constraints, technical constraints, and the end experience of your users. You foster trust, approach problems with empathy and respect, and embrace creativity.

Responsibilities And Duties

• Design and implement solutions in collaboration with team‑members for new features which integrate with various Disney media services and back‑ends.
• Collaborative API design with peer teams on API Services as well as front‑end teams which depend on our libraries.
• Research and development for media playback experiences, integration, and testing.
• Participate in project estimation and resource planning.
• Ability to collaborate in a small, productive development team as well as the larger engineering organization.
• Troubleshoot and resolve issues, problems, and errors encountered across our various platforms.
• Ability to collaborate in a small, productive development team as well as ability to work independently.
• Specialize in Apple technologies such as UIKit, SwiftUI, AVKit and StoreKit to build a world‑class application.

Required Experience And Skills

• At least 5 years of industry experience in iOS software development, 3 of which have been spent using Swift
• At least 5 years of industry experience implementing complex user interfaces using Apple's UIKit or SwiftUI.
• You have at least 3 years of experience in agile processes to help the team be effective and efficient.
• Able to demonstrate experience in the full lifecycle of software development. Early stage, maintenance, and end of life.
• An understanding of the trade‑offs of using different design patterns, such as MVC or MVVM
• Knowledgeable in programming paradigms including Object Oriented and Reactive
• Understanding of iOS/TVOS app development lifecycle.
• Experience in Object Oriented Programming
• Write efficient, reliable, and maintainable code whether implementing improvements, user‑facing features, or fixing defects – through collaboration with senior team members
• Experience with unit test frameworks and continuous integration systems
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Motivated self‑starter with the ability to learn and adapt to new technologies

Preferred Experience And Skills

• Experience with AVFoundation and its ecosystem
• Experience with streaming technologies including HLS, MPEG‑DASH, Transport Stream, and CMAF
• Experience developing applications in all Apple platforms including iPhone, iPad, and TVOS

Required Education

• Bachelor of Science in Computer Science or equivalent experience

The hiring range for this position in Glendale, CA is $144,100.00 to $193,200.00 per year and in New York, NY and Seattle, WA is $150,900.00 to $202,400.00 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long‑term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

Disclaimer

This position is with Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC, which is part of a business we call Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology. To learn more about Disney's guidelines on the use of AI for candidates, click here. Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.

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