Google Home's vast collection of device and service connections expands today with Spotify Free. This is the version of Spotify users can take advantage of (for free) with commercials and slightly lower-quality audio than a paid account. This update should be made today to add to the ever-growing list of voice-controlled services and devices shown below.
Spotify for Xbox One is available for download today, with the new streaming music app finally launching on Microsoft's console. Late to the game after the version of the Spotify player for Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4, its arrival is nonetheless a welcome one for gamers looking to escape the normal soundtrack for their favorite titles. It also takes advantage of Spotify's cross-network control system, so that you don't have to leave whatever you're playing to change track.
Until now, if gamers wanted to play games while listening to their favorite music on Spotify they needed to be PlayStation 4 owners. However, that will soon be changing for Xbox One owners, as the last few days have seen reports of Microsoft's Major Nelson testing a Spotify app on the console, along with confirmation from anonymous sources. But now Microsoft itself has spilled the beans with their weekly Xbox news video showing Spotify running on an Xbox One.
It's been a long time coming, but we may soon see a Spotify Music app land on the Xbox One. It almost strange to think that Spotify isn't on Xbox One yet, but considering that a Spotify app just arrived on the Windows 10 Store back in the June, the timing certainly seems right for a debut on Xbox One.
Some Spotify users report seeing a new automotive-centric feature that changes the app's interface after tapping a car-shaped icon. The driving mode, as it is currently being called, offers a simplistic interface on the Android app that includes basic swiping motions to sort through music, a large microphone icon for using voice commands, and large arrow buttons for skipping songs.
Creating playlists with your friends can lead to the discovery of a lot of great music, and today Spotify is trying to make that process even easier. Spotify announced today that it has given Facebook Messenger users the ability to create group playlists in-chat. The process of creating a group playlist seems pretty straightforward, as it centers around using Spotify's own Messenger extension.
Spotify has begun showing its free-tier users sponsored songs, something presented as part of a test that may see a wider rollout in the future. The sponsored songs are showing up for some users in both the mobile app and on desktop, showing up within existing playlists. The songs are opt-out, meaning users will see them unless they specifically choose not to. How widely the sponsored songs are being distributed isn't clear.
It is a time of miracles. Microsoft embraces Linux and open source. Apple creates a somewhat upgradeable iMac. And Taylor Swift brings her albums on Spotify. Yes, you read that right. In the name of celebrating the "1989" album's milestone achievements, the artist who waged war on most, but not all, streaming services is thanking her fans by putting her catalog back on all streaming services. And, yes, that does include Spotify.
Spotify has announced the acquisition of Niland, a machine learning startup based out of Paris. The music company made the announcement itself this week, explaining that Niland shares its 'passion for surfacing the right content to the right user at the right time.' Spotify plans to use the company's technology and know-how to improves its own recommendation abilities, doing so with the power of artificial intelligence behind it.
Next Monday, Spotify will offer details on a new tool for sharing music called Spotify Codes. The codes are designed to look like an audio wave, and when scanned they offer the recipient either a music track, a playlist, or an album, depending on what it points to. Though Spotify won't be detailing the codes until next week, images of them, as well as some primary details, have surfaced ahead of the formal debut.
Even with competition coming from giants like Google, Amazon, and Apple, Spotify still seems to be the go-to music streaming service for a lot of people. That may no longer be good enough, though, and Spotify could be looking to break into the hardware game as well. That's what a new job listing suggests, at any rate.
Jay Z fans may find their options a bit slim when it comes to streaming his music this weekend. The hip hop star has had his catalog of solo albums pulled from both the Apple Music and Spotify services, seemingly in favor of Tidal, the music service he co-owns. The removal of albums was made without prior notice, but Spotify reps have confirmed it was done at the request of the artist.
