Too Many Ads!

[nikcity]

I just want to mention that the ads for free accounts occur much too often. I can't even get through five tracks before I get a sequence of four or five ads. I know we are free users, but it is just ruining the experience to the point it is intolerable, and I am personaly considering finding other means of listening to music. Just wanted to get that out there. So annoying and frustating, and the ads are too long!

[saved]

I can see both points of view, but I do wonder how Spotify would fare without any advertising revenue. That's what will happen if all "freeloaders" (including those who simply can't afford to pay for whatever reason) decide to leave.

Perhaps a subscription-only service would be profitable enough, or perhaps the subscription cost would rise to cover advertising losses. Maybe they would have to drop student discounts.

I really don't know. It's just something to think about.

[Tatsuya]

Truth to be told this might be the sensible, albeit likely not very popular idea to do and just move away from freemium altogether.

[brjackson]

Yeah, Spotify is not what it used to be from a few years ago.  They have slowly increased the number of ads/song over time.

1)Every couple songs I get one to four ads(each about 30 seconds long) whereas it used to be four or five songs for ONE 15 second ad.

2)When I click a song during an ad, I get the standard "Your song will be played after the add.." message, however it NEVER plays the song that I have selected.  I then have to click the correct song once the wrong one has started playing.
3)Recently, I have run into an issue where the program just gets stuck on an ad and REFUSES to play music.  I can replay the ad all I want, but when it gets to the end, everything just stops and it won't move on to the next track.  So not only am I overrun with ads, but it seems I have some kind of special sub-free account where I must listen to nothing but ads or something.

I'm pretty much already out the door and looking for a new media streamer.  Good job Spotify, you are now the MySpace of streaming music...way to kill your product with ads!!!

[brjackson]

Ads are ok, but there must be a balance.  The balance is off and that's why people are complaining.  If you have been a free spotify user for more than a couple years, then you understand.

In addition, this is simply something that I use at work as I have no desire to be able to listen to any song at any time no matter where I am located.  I just want to use it for the 8hrs I am sitting at my desk at work...not worth $130/yr for my purposes.

However, if I wanted to utilize all the benefits of premium then it may be worth $130...but I have no interest in that.  Charge me $4/month for a premium service that only applies to a desktop(no mobile devices).  I would pay that!  All these marketing people on here talking about targetted marketing and whatnot.  How about some different pricing options!?!

[Tatsuya]

Different premium options is something i can perfectly get behind

However what comes about the ads and balance: I hate to be "that guy" but

1. Ads are basically the payoff if you choose to be a free user

2. With all the pressuring Spotify got and likely still gets from artists because of the free version of the service, its surprising they still have it


Ultimately the goal of any business is to "convert" people into paying customers and the free option imho was never meant to be more than a quite generous trial for people to decide if they like what they see to subscribe.

Its just as simple as it gets: you pay with your time or your money, you have the option.

[Tatsuya]

Also lets keep in mind that the individual ad revenue is worth considerably less than it used to be

Simply put: if 2 ads display was worth lets say 57 cents, nowadays you would need at least the double..to hit the same amount.

[georgeilliano]

Way too many ads im going back to Pandora

[Tatsuya]

theres no such thing as a free lunch, I hope everybody understands it

[sophos-au]

i just changed music providers; yes the regularirty of the adversisements was driving me crazy, as was the fact they were entitled "sponsership"...who are you kidding Spotify? "Sponsderhip" rather than the correct title "advertisements" is purely insulting.

Furhermore more it is apparent that your "sposonship" advertisements are the most annoying adverts and are clearly done so on purpose...psychologically. Of couse if you are a non-smoker with no lung issues, yet a loud and wihout warning durotuss advertisement with loud coughing, similar to my own voice, is is most embarrasing thing ever....I am convinced (it doesn't make take too much common sense here to relaise that these adverts are there on purpose to frustrate and offend the "free" trial @__spo__ user into signing up to a paid subrcription....I coulnd't be more conviced. It's clear/ They are louder than the music also, demanding that i get up adn turn them down or most often mute then have to get up and turn up my music again....none of those psycholocial marketing  schemes of yours work; they actually do the opposite. And to add further insult. it is suggested that you access music earlier than your friends, or share it with friends. What ever happened to music being a personal choice and suggestion that it needs to be a competitipn. I'm afraid, Spotify, that you have sucommed to greed and psychological tactics to improve profiits but perhaps it is worthwhile, inte advent of may alternatives...that you have really put me off. I will never recommend yout to friends.I have joined an alternative groups whose ethos is not so insulting. I'm very disappionted. 

[Tatsuya]

You should wanna read this, just to know at who you should complain: https://www.quora.com/Does-Spotify-intentionally-make-their-ads-obnoxious-and-annoying-to-try-and-ge...

[KristenOBrien]

Spotify needs to make money, they do so by playing ads and having people pay for a premium membership.

[Ismaelaldana]

It's been just a little over 2 years and this problem still has not been fixed. If you're not going to do anything about it then don't lie to us. On an average day of listening to music on Spotify I will get about 6 ads in just about 45 minutes. This isn't fair!

[Tatsuya]

What makes you entitled to any service for free?

You know the old saying: you get what you pay for.

[LouisOU68]

Well Roadie: based on the business model that I believe that Spotify is using if all of "free loaders" refused to listen to the tortuous free Spotify then you pay for use folks will be paying substantially more for your service. Because of their use of advertisements I find that they are noncompetitive in the market of free music services.

[Tatsuya]

Im pretty sure that that the ads are only there to help cover the cost of free users, because the sheer assumptions that without ad supported freemium the sub fee would be higher in itself is a ridiculous thing to say.

As a matter of fact: they cant rise the prices to the roof, simply because people will refuse to pony up insane amounts of month and Spotify knows this.

They arent their own enemies, ya know.

also may i kindly remind everyone: when you use a service for free, more often than not you are (or more precisely your data is )the product. Theres no such thing as a free lunch, only in fairy tales.

[Ismaelaldana]

But if I watch the video for 30 minutes of ad free streaming, I expect 30
minutes..For me I end up getting a single song streamed and then the ads
will come back up right away. It gets to the point where I hear more ads
than actual music.

[HK89]

We are three years later, but it's still the same. Spotify might be aware, but not doing anything about it. I've personally jumped to Amazon Prime. With just Prime you don't get as much choice as with Spotify, but no ads all over the place. Any not hearing the same ad 5 times in an hour. 

[Haveagooday76]

You guys are getting 6 songs?!?! I'm getting 2, at most. Although I was lucky today and got about 5 ish. But most of my songs are like 6 minutes so that makes a difference but still. Please fix this soon.

[darwinandbridey]

Been keping track of ads intervals today.  30mins my A. Gaps broke down as 

23mins

15mins

20mins 

17min

18mins 

12mins

27mins

Anyone else since a dramtic uptake in the reduction of gaps between songs?

[bobincali]

I use the Android app on my Amazon Fire tablet. Until a month ago when I open the app up I would hear "watch this ad & then hear 30 minutes of ad free music. This lasted for years. Now I listen to one song, ONE SONG! Then a bunch of ads. I am thinking of cancelling my account & using You Tube, plus listening to the music I have on my iPod.