Why do i have ads on my podcasts even with premium?

[ToastMaster791]

This has only been a recent issue for me (the last 2 months maybe), but it's been a constant thing with every podcast I listen to.

Each time I go to listen to a podcast, it opens up immediately with a 1-2 minute ad, then periodically sometimes in the middle of sentences another 1-2 minute ad starts playing.

If I pay every month for "no ads" how come I'm getting them now? I've been re-listening to a podcast I love which had no ads whatsoever even before I had premium, and now all of the sudden ads are everywhere in these episodes.

So what's happening? Why do I pay monthly for something that doesn't even give me what I pay for? I'm thinking of switching apps because this is just frustrating.

[e37210]

• Can anyone help me with understanding why without my authorisation app named "Adgenerator - Spotify self-serve ad platform" is adding to my account? It generate adds during podcasts. And I am not talking about adda supported and read by creator of the podcast. It looks like in the attachment.

Plan:Premium

Country: Poland

Device

Operating System

(iOS 10, Android Oreo, Windows 10,etc.)

My Question or Issue

[mr_kleenex]

and still no one from sppotify is answering or addressing this issue. lots of bs.

[Wesznl]

Spotify is becoming unusable: broken features, bad decisions, and no communication

I honestly don’t know what’s going on at Spotify anymore. It’s absurd.

Useless features keep getting added while core functionality (especially around podcast)  is completely neglected or broken. Basic podcast controls/queue system? Missing. Ad-free experience for paying users? Doesn’t exist. Instead, we get half-baked updates that no one asked for and bizarre GUI changes that only make the app more frustrating to use. And then they also blatantly lie, and accuse the creators of adding these ads - /shrug

[sarah-elbadry]

I'm on individual premium plan and while listening to Podcasts, an ad is interrupting the episodes at the beginning, middle and the end of each episode. 

Plan

Premium

Country

United Arab Emirates

My Question or Issue

I'm not comfortable with those ads while I'm paying for premium subscription. Please solve it ASAP. Thank you!

[mr_kleenex]

Since they have no intention to fix this and there is zero communication, Anyone know how to file an official complaint with spotify?

[mr_kleenex]

Well, after a long debate with bot an an ádvisor', this what I've been told:I see. As part of the Premium subscription, all music can be enjoyed ad-free. And while Spotify doesn’t play ads that interrupt the music listening experience of Premium subscribers, some podcasts may include advertising, host-read endorsements, or sponsorship independently of the streaming platforms featuring such podcasts.

second reaction: 
Podcast creators have the option to monetize and live off of their content. As this is a good way to support content creators we don't plan on taking this feature away from them at the moment and we also don't enforce any mandates on who wants to activate it or not. Also, Spotify Premium reserves the right to insert ads on exclusive podcasts, and ones that they produce/own. Ads will never be inserted into music streaming.

My argument that they dont own or produce the why files:
I truly understand your concern, I am just explaining that Podcast includes ads both from Spotify and inserted sponsorship from creators.

So that leaves me with the question, what is the best paid ad-free alternative for spotify?

[ThePodfather]

Hey, I want to clarify here.  Podcasts usually include some advertising. This has been the case since the early days of podcasts, and continues to be true today, including on Spotify. Even as a Premium user, you may receive advertising or sponsored messages when playing a podcast. If you are a Premium user, you will still enjoy an ad-free music listening experience but this doesn't apply to podcasts. We don't offer premium podcast subscriptions. 

[Papaya182]

Hi, I've tried to log out and in but I'm still hearing the ads... Sosooso uncomfortable! They don't follow any pattern, could be at the begging of a podcast but also the ads jump while I'm listening to it - this is nonsense as I've been paying for my premium subscription for years now!!!! I got a xiaomi 10 pro, and this thing happens on it and on my Samsung TV too. I am going to ask fro a refund - this ahs been going on for a while but for the last 2 days it has even increased - NOSENSE

[mr_kleenex]

Hi there, thank you for your answer. I do not mind occasional ads from the contentmakers themselves, I gladly support them. What I do mind are IP based ads, clearly from spotify, in the beginning, random in the middle, sometimes multipke times, and at the end. I used the whyfiles as example, since the argument was that 'spotify only does this with content that they own', but I also experienced this with Triggernometry and Lateral from Tom Scott. This has been happening since a couple of months, never had that before. And seeing the reactions more of us have that.

If the end conclusion is "We don't offer premium podcast subscriptions" I want to add that spotify lost value, especially with the rises in prices lately, you leave no other option then to look for an alternative.

[mr_kleenex]

Hi Adam (since he is the podfather I assume you are him :)) see my thread with spotify support. They do not offer ad free podcast subscriptions. I am open to alternatives, dus als je wat weet hou ik me aanbevolen. 😄

[happyendling]

...about the COMPLETE RUN AROUND everyone reporting this issue is getting from Spotify! Even with it being a known issue and me reporting several times that the "log out and in" fix isn't working! 

It especially does NOT help and kinda lends me some credibility that around the same time I was having ALSO STILL UNRESOLVED issues with getting into the ad free part on feed for one of my podcasts!!! Hm it's almost like they're hoping to milk a little more off their subscribers by being slow to fix these things. 

We'll see if I keep giving Spotify my money after *8 years as a subscriber* the way this last month of begging for help has gone. 

Plan

Premium

Country

USA

Device

Pixel 7

Operating System

Android Oreo

My Question or Issue

At what point did Premium users start getting SPOTIFY INTERJECTED ADS in their podcast queues? Because I never agreed to that change and if it did change I want to cancel my premium and I want a refund. Ad free listening is the only reason I'm here. 

[mepassos]

lots of ads all the time even when paying!!

[Donnakel]

Spotify replied to tell me the ad I heard was within the podcast and nothing they could do. It wasn't. It was separate. I even gave them the screenshot. 

It's not right!

[K_lliste]

I've been getting these ads too. I haven't been paying attention to the app when they happen, but the podcast episodes are years old, made in the UK. I am in Australia and the ads are Australian, one of them is specific to a franchise from my city.

My main issue is I don't like the ad content. I don't know how to report or say "I'm not interested" like you can on other apps.

[Athalel]

American podcast, ads in danish. It just suddenly started 2 days ago. When I go back to earlier podcast, which didn't have ads, now they do. I even remember thinking "I'm glad I paid premium" when I heard the "We'll be right back after this" message. Oh well 2 days it took and apperently no solution. That's an unsubscribe for me.

[aedh]

Hi I have the same problem, The adds are not part of the podcast. When I listen to the podcast on my laptop. no add. when I listen to the same add on my Iphone, I suddenly get adds. But since I usually listen to podcast in my car, I am stuck with the obnoxious adds. It feels like being scammed. I pay my protection money like everybody else

[Natr1x]

I've had Spotify premium for probably 10 years now. I've always seen it as overall a pretty nice actor when compared to the competition (apple, google, etc).

But the kind of wilful ignorance and gaslighting here is really getting on my nerves. I could accept that podcasts are not add free, I would just stop using spotify for podcasts and just keep it for music.

But the fact this is not explicitly stated or acknowledged is probably going to get me to cancel my membership if they don't adress it soon.

[xordji0bt-_pm]

After 10 years I downgraded from premium to basic just now. Only difference is no audio books.

So 2 euro per month less for spotify until they reinstate premium service without ads.

[Fabiogranata]

Same, just deleted my subscription after I don't even know how many years, more than a decade for sure. 

[doomster78666]

Just got this issue. I don't listen to podcasts often but I just started listening to one more frequently. I'm a premium user and the only ads on podcasts I got were ads that the creators themselves inserted in the podcast - which I understand is not covered by Spotify itself. However I just got an actual ad from Spotify saying that "your podcast will continue after this message". Why was this, are podcasts not covered by premium? This was not clear.