Spotify users are cancelling their subscriptions due to a lack of HomePod support
Spotify is one of the most popular music streaming services. Over time, it has grown in popularity and reached a wider audience. Spotify consumers, on the other hand, are growing impatient with the music streaming service’s lack of HomePod compatibility, with some customers considering terminating their subscriptions and switching to another platform, such as Apple Music.
Spotify Users are Cancelling Subscriptions
Apple revealed during the 2020 Worldwide Developers Conference that third-party music service capability would be added to HomePod more than a year ago. A few months later, Apple announced that Amazon Music, Pandora, and iHeartRadio would be among the apps that would benefit from the new functionality. Spotify is one noticeable omission from the list.
It’s unclear whether Spotify declined to be included in the first round of third-party music providers with HomePod support or whether Apple didn’t ask. Nonetheless, a few weeks later, a feature request was made on the Spotify Community forum, requesting that Spotify add compatibility for HomePod.
Spotify says it expects to include AirPlay 2 functionality into its iOS app at the time, in June 2020, and more recently. AirPlay 2 support allows customers to play Spotify material through their HomePod, however, it is not native HomePod support. Users will be able to utilise Siri to play Spotify material from their HomePod without having to launch the app and pick the speaker manually. It is worth mentioning that the music streaming platform recently added a much-awaited feature that allows users to remove contacts permanently.
Customers are expressing their dissatisfaction, with one user saying that Spotify is behaving badly “This is a huge joke — how can they still not be offering it,” one person remarked, while another said, “this is a whole joke — how can they still not be selling it… How many individuals have come here, seen this, and then left without saying anything? Why does Spotify making it so difficult to help them?”
The reason for Spotify’s unwillingness to support Apple’s HomePod is unknown. Spotify has previously referred to Apple as “anti-competitive,” claiming that the tech giant makes it difficult for other services to compete with Apple Music. When given the opportunity to compete on an equal footing with Apple’s offering, Spotify appears to be less interested.
While the HomePod was still a niche product when third-party support was revealed, it has gradually become more mainstream thanks to the smaller $99 HomePod mini, which was just released in new colours.
In Other News
Apple Music is offering a free three-month trial to new consumers, which includes native HomePod functionality. Customers who purchase select AirPods and Beats headphones will receive six months of Apple Music for free.
