Autoplay activated for Apple TV. Spotify Connect problematic functioning.

[Hawk9999]

Plan

Premium

Country

the Netherlands

My Question or Issue

The way Spotify Connect ‘works’ with Apple TV has changed, and it is not an improvement. 

Previous, when I entered the Apple TV app, that was enough to activate Apple TV Spotify Connect link on my iPhone. 

Then I could choose the artist, album or song *on my phone* or *tablet* and play it on the Apple TV through Spotify Connect. 

This has changed with the latest update. 

Now, entering the Apple TV Spotify app is not enough to make the Apple TV Spotify Connect option visible and thus available

I must now play a song from within the Apple TV Spotify app, to ensure that my Apple TV becomes visible as a Spotify Connect endpoint. 

Only then can I connect to my Apple TV and use my phone or tablet as a Spotify Connect remote. 

Another thing that is bothering me is that 'Autoplay' is automatically selected and active, when the album I am listening to via the Apple TV has ended.

And there seems to be no way to turn it off. When Apple TV is selected as Spotify Connect endpoint, the option to turn 'Autoplay' off is greyed out. 

Please fix this. 

[-Karma-]

Why is Smart Shuffle automatically enabled with the latest tvOS app update and can’t be disabled? I don’t want Smart Shuffle (this is where they showed when playing an item from search)

 

[Dessi]

Hi there @-Karma-,

Thanks for reaching out!

We just wanted to shed some light on how Smart Shuffle works - in this case it seems like this isn't actually related to it, since Smart Shuffle doesn't really work this way when you search and play a song, it's only available on your playlists. What might be the cause here is the Autoplay feature on the other devices you might be using, so we recommend checking if it's enabled and turning it off to see if that makes a difference. The change should be on an account level and it should take effect on the TV as well.

Hope this helps.

[Ivelina]

Hey @Hawk9999,

Thank you for creating this thread in the Community!

The update on Apple TV brought some changes to the design of the Spotify app, however, the functions should work as before. 

Using the Connect feature you should still be able to start playback from your mobile device/tablet and then continue by connecting to the Apple TV. With this said it's worth performing some troubleshooting and if you've not done this already I recommend a clean reinstall of Spotify across your devices to ensure the app is up-to-date, as well as to remove corrupted cache which may cause different performance issues. Additionally, make sure that you've updated the operating systems of the devices and restart your router then re-connect the devices. Let us know if these steps make a difference.

When it comes to Autoplay, we're currently looking into the function on the back end, but when you disable it on one device - this should be synced across devices. Before connecting to the TV, make sure that you've disabled Autoplay on the phone and tablet, but if the function is greyed out, it's worth testing to disable it on desktop - let us know how things look like there.

Appreciate your cooperation and we'll be on the lookout for your response.

[Hawk9999]

"When it comes to Autoplay, we're currently looking into the function on the back end, but when you disable it on one device - this should be synced across devices."

Thanks for answering and for that info.

What I meant was that if I go to the Apple TV connect link and go to 'options' the options to change 'Autoplay' is greyed out.

But that might be completely irrelevant is it is synchronized across devices. I suspect my Apple TV Spotify app is corrupted. Also because I don't see anyone else reporting these problems. 

I reinstall, and report back; both if the problems are still there and/or if this solves the problems. 

[Hawk9999]

I tried deleting the Apple TV app four times, I logged out four times. 

Everything stayed the same. I starting to think it works as designed. Which is not good news for me. 

With all due respect, but have you checked how exactly it is intended to work?

[Ivelina]

Thank you for the quick response and troubleshooting @Hawk9999. We appreciate you testing.

Just to clarify, are you now able to start and stream music from the phone/tablet on to the Apple TV without first starting playback from the app on the TV itself? 

As I mentioned that we're looking into the Autoplay feature it would be very helpful if you could share the following:

• Is the Autoplay feature greyed out in the Spotify app on your Apple TV?
• Does Autoplay appear greyed out on your phone/tablet when streaming on to the Apple TV?
• If it's possible, test with streaming from a desktop device on to the TV and let us know if you're able to toggle off Autoplay in the Settings.
• What happens and if the app on the Apple TV continues playback if you've previously toggled off Autoplay on the phone and tablet?

Additionally, send us your devices' makes, models and operating systems, as well as the Spotify-version you're currently using. 

Thank you once again and don't hesitate to let us know if anything else comes up in the meantime.

[Hawk9999]

"Just to clarify, are you now able to start and stream music from the phone/tablet on to the Apple TV without first starting playback from the app on the TV itself? "

No. Unfortunately not. 

"Is the Autoplay feature greyed out in the Spotify app on your Apple TV?"

There is not a setting available on the Apple TV to control this. 

"Does Autoplay appear greyed out on your phone/tablet when streaming on to the Apple TV?"

Yes. That is the problem. 

"If it's possible, test with streaming from a desktop device on to the TV and let us know if you're able to toggle off Autoplay in the Settings"

It is not possible, the only devices where that option is available are my iPhone 15 Pro and my iPad Air.

"What happens and if the app on the Apple TV continues playback if you've previously toggled off Autoplay on the phone and tablet?"

The Spotify app on my Apple TV engages in Autoplay at the end of the queue I started.

iPhone 15 Pro with IOS 26 Spotify v 9.0.91.2131
iPad Air with iPadOS 26.   Spotify v. 9.0.91.1231
AppleTV 4K with tvOS 26. Spotify v. 9.0.94
iMac M4 with macOS 26. Spotify v. 1.275.510

[OscarDC]

Hey @Hawk9999,

Thank you for keeping in contact and for the info shared.

We've tested this with different devices and the "Autoplay" option is always greyed out when the Connect feature is active since the playback is not coming from that specific device. However, turning the option to OFF on the mobile/desktop app before activating the Connect feature worked, so we'd recommend giving it a try to see if it changes the behavior on your Apple TV as well. Also make sure to have the Repeat and Smart Shuffle options turned off.

For the Connect issue, since you mentioned that you've deleted the Apple TV app some times and logged back in, would you mind confirming if you've followed the process mentioned here to remove the Spotify app from your Apple TV and redownload it? This is just to make sure we're on the same page.

Lastly, as the issue with Connect could be related to the network connection, would you mind trying to connect your devices to a different Wi-Fi to see if it makes any difference? If you don't have another one, you can use a mobile data hotspot to test it. 

Hope this helps. Let us know how it goes. 

[Hawk9999]

"However, turning the option to OFF on the mobile/desktop app before activating the Connect feature worked.."

Worked with what, exactly? An Apple TV 4K? 

Because on my Apple TV 4K it keeps activating 'Autoplay' after the last track of the album I have chosen. And I have turned OFF autoplay on all my devices. All of them, my iPhone, my iPad and on my desktop. On ALL of them. BEFORE I startup playing the track on my Apple TV. 

"would you mind confirming if you've followed the process mentioned here to remove the Spotify app from your Apple TV and redownload it? This is just to make sure we're on the same page."

Sure, that is exactly how I did it. No change. 

"Lastly, as the issue with Connect could be related to the network connection, would you mind trying to connect your devices to a different Wi-Fi to see if it makes any difference? " 

I changed from a Wired Connection on my Apple TV to Wi-Fi, same results, same 'problem'.

I changed on my desktop iMac M4 from Wired to Wife, same results, same problem.  

Used mobile data hotspot for iPhone and iPad with the same results and the same problems.

Can you answer a question I have? Can you reproduce the behaviour? Both the behaviour with Connect and with Autoplay?

And question two: can you please confirm that this is NOT how it supposed to work?  

Thanks in advance.

H. 

[-Karma-]

I just checked. Autoplay is disabled on my iPhone. So why is Smart Shuffle even a thing on the Apple TV app? Please add a setting to disable it directly on the Apple TV app

[Ivelina]

Hey @Hawk9999 and @-Karma-,

Thank you for the cooperation. 

We've forwarded this info to the relevant team, so that they can have a further look and as soon as we have any updates on the matter, we'll let you know here.

In the meantime, don't hesitate to let us know if you need assistance with anything else.

[Hawk9999]

Thanks Ivelina. 

[-Karma-]

@Ivelina What is my post about Smart Shuffle doing in this thread? It has nothing to do with autoplay, Spotify connect or whatever you’re discussing here.