.IPK File Extension

WebOS is a smart TV operating system used by LG televisions. Developers who create webOS apps do so using the webOS TV SDK, which contains a development kit, a command-line interface, and a webOS emulator.

After a developer finishes creating their webOS application, they package the app as an IPK file. They can then install the IPK file on a webOS TV with Developer Mode active, to continue testing their app, or upload the IPK file to the LG Smart TV Content Store, for distribution to other smart TVs.

IPK files are meant to be installed and run on LG webOS smart TVs. After enabling Developer Mode on your LG webOS smart TV, you can use the webOS IDE or command-line interface to install your IPK file. Note that, after 50 hours, your TV will automatically leave Developer Mode and uninstall the IPK file (unless you manually extend the Developer Mode session time).

You can also use the webOS emulator, included with the webOS TV SDK, to run the app an IPK file contains.

UbiArt is a proprietary game engine that UbiSoft created and began using internally in the mid-2000s. Games developed using the UbiArt game engine contain several proprietary-format files, including IPK files.

IPK files contain multiple related game assets, such as textures, shaders, and animation files used to show and animate in-game objects. Each IPK file is compressed using either Zlib or LZMA compression. Some of the files that IPK archives contain may themselves be compressed.

In the late 2010s, UbiSoft began phasing out the UbiArt game engine. However, UbiSoft still uses the engine to develop the Just Dance series of games.

Modders who want to extract the game data that IPK files contain can do so using a variety of player-created tools. For example, QuickBMS (Windows) users have created many game-specific .BMS scripts that allow them to extract data from IPK files. You can also use the Ubiart Archive Tools utility to extract (and create) IPK files.