Mix playlists get updated unexpectedly

[qrw_mc]

Plan

Premium

Country

Russian Federation

Device

PC

Operating System

Windows 10 Pro 20H2 (build 19042.870)

Client version

1.1.56.595.g2d2da0de (Microsoft Store version)

Hello. For a couple of weeks, I've been having this issue when playlists from 'Made for you section' get updated unexpectedly and/or too often (like in an hour of listening or so). I managed to record a short video:

https://youtu.be/7qQ4P9RzfFA

Please note that the timestamps for few tracks changed from '12 hours ago' to 'an hour ago' along with track names, when I pressed the 'Like' button. This was actually 2nd change like this in the last 1-2 hours. Seems like it started after one of the recent updates, not sure which one. I noticed that playlists also get changed like this even without me pressing the 'Like' button, sometimes it happens  during listening on it's own. This is very annoying.

What I have tried by now: I re-installed the app from Windows Store and it changed nothing.

[Ivan]

Hey @qrw_mc, 

Thanks for posting - we’re here to help!        
 

If you still observe this after reinstalling the app we recommend trying out a clean reinstall as well. This step is more thorough than a regular reinstall in removing corrupted data from previous installations that could be causing issues with the desktop app. 

Tip: Once you're done with the clean reinstall, make sure you download the app from the official Spotify website here. 

In case this persists after a clean reinstall we recommend checking the hosts file on your PC for entries that need to be deleted. Follow the steps described here on how you can do that.

Let us know how you get on! We'll be here in case you need any further help with this. 

[qrw_mc]

Hello Ivan, thank you for your reply.

The re-install I mentioned in my previous post *was*, in fact, a clean one: when I uninstalled the application via Settings/Applications applet, there weren't any leftovers of Spotify found in the system.

Hosts file didn't appear to have anything suspicious, either.

Also, when you say 'make sure you download the app from the official Spotify website', do you mean that I should prefer using a stand-alone version of Spotify installed by a web-installer, rather than Windows Store version?

[Jeremy]

Hi there @qrw_mc,

Thank you for your reply and for the troubleshooting steps you've taken so far.

We'd just like to see if anything changes if you download Spotify from the website.

Let us know how everything works 🙂

Take care!

[qrw_mc]

Hey Jeremy.

I did install the version with web-installer this time, let's see how this turns out. As for the issue itself, I haven't experienced it since my first post in this topic.

PS. Could logging into this site through TOR somehow be considered a suspicious activity by Spotify? As some community.spotify.com's IPs are blocked in Russia by authorities, I had to use TOR in order to be able to post my previous message in the topic, but then Spotify suddenly forced me to reset/change password for my account.

[Novy]

Hey @qrw_mc, 

Thanks for keeping us in the loop.

Keep in mind that we don't support proxies or VPNs, so it could be that our systems are flagging them as such. 

If you're using any of these while using the app, it might struggle to identify a single connection and it would explain this behavior. 

We'll be here if you have any other questions. 

Cheers.

[qrw_mc]

Hey, Novy.

I was only using TOR to make a post here, on community.spotify.com, not while listening to music in the app. So the issue in question is not TOR- or VPN-related at all.

[Novy]

Hi @qrw_mc, 

Thanks for getting back to us with this clarification!

If possible, could you ask a friend or a family member to log in to their personal account using your device to see if they can replicate this?

If you don't have any account at the moment, you can create a new test account here. 

Let us know how it goes.

[qrw_mc]

Ok, so I've been experimenting a bit and here's what I have found out:

0. For more than a week, I've been using a version installed with a web-installer taken from here: https://download.scdn.co/SpotifySetup.exe.

1. I have experienced the issue with unexpectedly updating mix playlists a couple of times more using my main account (this one). So on my old account the issue still persists.

2. I have created a new test account and found that the UI has changed since (not sure if it could be related in any way).

3. Under new account, no playlists were updated unexpectedly while listening to music, but some were updated after I left my PC sleeping at night and woke it up at morning. So, either I just wasn't 'lucky' enough to run across playlist updates while listening to it, or updating mix playlists might be a feature, I dunno.

Could you please confirm if it's a feature or not? If yes, I would probably cancel my subscription then and stick with another recommendation and streaming service, because this issue together with the new UI update is a deal breaker for me.

Thank you.

[Eni]

Hey @qrw_mc, 

Thanks for your reply. 

Keep in mind that some of the Made for you playlists get updated daily or as frequently as you listen to them. For more info, we suggest that you check this article.

On another note, could you let us know if the issue persists when you're logged in to your account on a a different PC?

We'll be on the lookout.

[qrw_mc]

Hey @eni

Your link always redirects me to another page (https://support.spotify.com/ru-ru/article/find-playlists) which constantly delivers HTTP 404 status code (not found). I had to manually change ru-ru to ru-en (wat?! en-us locale somehow wouldn't work) and finally it opened. The page also seems to contain a typo: 'Get mixes based on artists, genres, and decades you love you love' (note that 'you love' repeated two times).

So frequent updates ARE a feature! Your statement was: '...some of the Made for you playlists get updated daily or as frequently as you listen to them'. The page you linked me to says: 'The more you listen, the more frequently it updates.'

Could you please elaborate a bit on this? So how often do these kinds of playlists update really?

Also, what is the purpose of updating the playlist user is currently listening to? And why is it that the playlist which is 4-5 hours long, can be updated as frequently as in 1-2 hours few times in a row. How am I supposed to listen to all the recommendations if they are invalidated in just 1-2 hours?

As for logging to Spotify on a different PC -- no, sorry. I don't have access to another PC now.

Thank you.

[Jeremy]

Hi there @qrw_mc,

Thank you for your post and for the screen recording. We're happy to help.

Can you perform a clean reinstall of the app? This will make sure there's no old cache files causing this.

If that doesn't do the trick, can you log in with a different account on the device - such as a friend's or a family member's to see if the issue persist?

We'll keep an eye out for your reply.

Cheers!

[qrw_mc]

Hey Jeremy.

I had already done clean reinstall and the issue persisted.

I also tried to login to newly created account -- and we found out that (seemingly unreasonably) frequent updates of some playlists appear to be a feature.

[Jeremy]

Hi again @qrw_mc,

Thank you for your reply.

Apologies for the confusion regarding the clean reinstall.

Can you let us know if you get the same behavior from a different device?

As @Eni mentioned - the Made for you playlists get updated daily or as frequently as you listen to them. 

Cheers!