[All Platforms][Connect] re-categorise podcasts as AUDIO so they play on Connect devices

[itsmrjack]

Podcasts will not play on audio-only Connect devices because Spotify has labelled them as "mixed-media". They are not mixed media, they are audio files.

This is an issue that has been noted by the community for some time (around 18 months at least) and not addressed by Spotify in any serious way. It is not a niche problem as it will affect ALL users who listen to podcasts and own an audio-only Spotify Connect device. In other words, potentially millions of people globally. Please Spotify, rectify this issue as a matter of urgency. I for one am a regular podcast listener who bought an audio-only Connect device so that I could play podcasts through it, only to find that I cannot because of a categorisation error on your part.

To further elucidate the issue, and Spotify's lack of action on it, I point to an earlier (now closed) idea post submitted by another user (charango88) https://community.spotify.com/t5/Closed-Ideas/All-Platforms-Connect-Make-Podcasts-playable-on-audio-...

The advice given to this Spotify user was that this is "an issue that's worth investigating" and for them to find relevant help topics. However no relevant help topics exist for this problem.

[andvib]

please fix

[Derek2daP]

Has this idea gone anywhere?  Has been and continues to be an issue that’s been going as long as I’ve had Spotify premium. 

[b5254]

I have this problem too. Spotify do something!!! 

[richtiff]

From one of the other forum posts it appears this is due to Spotify not classing a podcast as an audio file... can I ask, if this is the case, what on earth it is?! I can certainly hear the podcasts on my phone, so I would say this is an audio file!

The issue here is really annoying, as the sound quality of my Sonos speakers (and the Sonos Amp connected to my entertainment surround system) is far better than my phone.

Please fix this as a priority in the next update, this has been a deficiency in spotify connect now for over 2 years!

[jimwright_98]

This is a bug, not an idea. Bewildered that you are treating this as an idea/new feature. You lose the Spotify Connect eco system then next time people will just buy a Bluetooth system. And then they'll stream anything and realise they aren't tied into Spotify. 

[Michael99]

I can play some podcasts through my Sonos system - but not the ones I particularly want to listen to (e.g. BBC podcasts) where my Sonos speakers are greyed out and unavailable in Spotify connect.

It didn't occur to me that this would be something to vote for in a feature request - I am sure there are more than 100 people who would vote for this if they realised it was something that could be fixed.

Is it that hard to sort out that it needs a vote?

[stjlestrange]

My guess is that is a legal-financial issue for Spotify and not a technical one. This at least would explain the failure to act upon it for a number of years now and the repeated attempts to politely ignore it.

Spotify took a business decision to classify podcasts as "mixed media" despite being audio files. This is not because those in Spotify responsible for this decision didn't know the difference. If anything, they knew all too well that a podcast can be a mix of talk and (unlicensed) music and hence to cover their legal posteriors reclassified them as "mixed media".

I access podcasts independently of Spotify using an internet radio and many of the podcasts won't play for copyright reasons such as including music within them.  If this is the case with Spotify too, then it will be another few years (it at all) before this issue is resolved.

That said, one would at least expect a straight answer from Spotify so those of us who like to stream podcasts to standalone sound systems using Spotify Connect can explore other options--now, and in the future.

[Luv2dance]

I too thought my speaker was the problem but apparently not. I pay for Spotify so that I can listen using multiroom speakers yet I am being penalised by Spotify as they restrict what I can and can't listen to using connect. I wanted to vote but the vote button doesn't seem to work for me...is the voting now closed?

[JimmyGragget]

Come on, Spotify - this is ridiculous.  As well as a couple of hundred of that have reported this bug on here there must bu thousands that think they're doing something wrong.  Podcasts are audio.  Audio systems should be able to play them!

[Mechabjornis]

Hello,

i have excactly the same problem as others describe.

Spotify in this thread comments: Link

«Keep in mind that some podcasts are not available to be played on all devices» - what kind of podcasts are you refering to? Is there a list available? Are those a set type or is it due to lacking agreements with the providers?

In Norway NRK is the national radio provider, so not being able to play their podcasts is just not acceptable ! Had I known this, I might not have invested in yet another expensive device for Spotify Connect to remedy the problem.

(Semi-off topic: I also have no luck plying the NRK podcasts offline on my Garmin watch. There is no explaination, just a sync that goes on for a long while, then nothing is transfered)

Bjorn S.

PS I am using devices on iPad OS and Android with a Bluesound Node 2