Please continue supporting iOS/Android streaming SDKs

[florom]

We have been using those SDKs since they became available.

Our particular app (Amazing Slow Downer) lets the user play music more slowly, since a couple of years ago also songs from Spotify. The "ios-streaming-sdk" is a beautifully designed framework that lets an audio developer do practically everything needed.
In our case it makes it possible to access the raw audio samples and this way process the sound and then playback the processed audio using our regular audio playback engine. With your new SDK this is not possible. It might be that the "ios-streaming-sdk" is more difficult to use for an average developer but that also makes it more powerful.

We have many users that uses Spotify. Many users switch from other streaming services such as "Apple Music", Tidal, Amazon Music etc to Spotify just to be able to slow down streaming music in real time.

We believe our app gives Spotify many many new subscribers, so many that it would actually pay off for Spotify to maintain the "ios-streaming-sdk".

We only use "playlist" functions and after fixing a couple of bugs in the "metadata framework" available on github, everything works 100%. Although there are certainly some bugs in the “ios-streaming-sdk”, they are very few and don’t affect our app.

We also have an Android version of our app that uses your Android streaming SDK and it also works very good.

We believe Spotify will loose thousands of users, so many that the minimal cost Spotify need to spend on maintenance will pay off manifold.

Since our app also supports playback and slowing down of streaming Apple Music, many of our users will probably switch from subscribing to Spotify to subscribing to Apple Music.

You write:

"After September 1st, important functionality in the streaming SDKs will stop working."
Exactly what does that mean? What part of the SDK will continue to work?

Please continue supporting iOS/Android streaming SDKs!

Rolf Nilsson
CTO
Roni Music

[michaelanthonyh]

Thanks so much for all your efforts.  I will immediately get a tidal subscription if it works. **bleep** Spotify. 

[alohahawaiikiki]

Looking forward to testing with Tidal, @florom.

Now I need to migrate my family to Tidal as well and cancel the Spotify subscription.

Don’t see a point continuing using it, as Spotify breached my loyalty twice:

- promised and never delivered HiFi

- now ASD with very unconvincing reasoning

Spotify proved not caring about their customers by not listening to them, breaching promises and neglecting even to provide any transparent explanation.

”Legal” requirement doesn’t sound convincing at all, as other services can continue doing it.

It’s a shame.

[AtomGram]

Plan

Premium

Country

United States

Device

iPhone 12 Pro, iPad Pro 12.9, MacBook Pro M1 Pro

Operating System

iOS 15, MacOs 12.5

My Question or Issue

Please restore Amazing Slow Downer for Spotify.  I have searched my soul for some logical reason that you can't keep this valuable option available to musicians like myself.  There is none that I can find.  I will be cancelling my subscription due to this if it is not rectified and moving to a different service. Tack, Adam

[LorenzoBisogno]

I’m a musician and I have my own music streamed on Spotify; the main reason why I use this channel is because I can put all my songs on amazing slow downed app and so I can practice with it, slowing down the tempo of the songs, changing pitch and many more things.

Can you please make Spotify work again with Amazing slow downer?

I made my students download Spotify app just so it can works with ASD!

waiting for your reply,

sincerely

Lorenzo Bisogno

[ken_murray]

I'm a user of this app with Spotify. I'm very disappointed that they've removed this feature.

They really should bring it back ASAP.

[genesse6]

I too would like to make a feature request for Spotify to re-enable the ability to slow down Spotify music with apps such as Amazing Slow Downer. It provides so much value for a large number of Spotify subscribers, as you can see from recent threads. Thanks.

[genesse6]

Hi Josh,

Thanks for the reply, Josh. Is it possible that Spotify would reconsider this decision? Similar to the way Apple did... "We have re-evaluated our previous decision to disable changing the playback rate for subscription content from Apple Music in third-party applications, and we came to the conclusion that we could safely enable that functionality again"

[Matts7]

I originally became a Spotify subscriber because of its compatibility with Amazing Slower Downer. I am a musician and educator and use this app literally for hours everyday. 

[RadicalApp]

I'm the creator of a significantly different application. We've been using your streaming SDKs for years and looked at both app remote and web SDKs for our native applications. They're not fit for purpose for any native experience built atop Spotify. We've been forced to move to the web SDK which has basically crippled our experience and left us making huge sacrifices in order to just keep the app online. 

My ask is simple: 

• Reinstate the streaming SDK (Your own native apps are almost certainly using one) and possibly even update it to align closer to what you're using for your own first-party native experiences.
• Or vastly improve the web playback SDK. Remove the lock screen controls being emitted from the iframe, add an event for progress and just better state events in general. Bundle it as a WASM binary rather than an iFrame (Browser DRM is a nightmare) and allow it to directly play songs rather than calling the API externally.

We'll be forced to re-platform everything in our service to any and all of your competition otherwise which would be a massive shame. 

Developers were responsible for filling your functional gaps and growing your premium subscriber base in the early days, it would be a misstep to not return the favour. 

[spinal_tap]

Well said and clearly explained. @radicalapp @spotifyjosh @florom

[senablant]

With this decision, spotify is showing what they actually care about... They are acting like the record industry monopoly in the past regarding the whole professional musicians. They don't care about musician or sharing the art of the music, they only care about money like many other industry did.

One thing is clear, I'll move to deezer or any other platform sooner than later. Thanks Spotify for clarifying my decision.

[Flatnine]

The lure of Apple Music, and being able to ask Siri to play a tune in my car is huge. But Amazing Slow Downer is why I have kept Spotify. And why I practically forced the guys in my band as well as my previous band to get Spotify Premium. In addition to helping us learn tunes, we share all kinds of playlists. But if Amazing Slow Downer won’t work with Spotify, I have to consider the practical aspect of my streaming service choice. Please reconsider quickly, before I switch to Apple Music. As well as my whole band. 

[Violetamarilis]

I'm a user of this app and it's very helpful to teach dance (in my case) and play songs from my Spotify playlist and change the pitch and the speed.

It’s the best instrument that I’ve never had, it help me a lot in my day working and teaching. 

Please, reconsider keeping this SDK and keep ASD working!

The users will be grateful

[125081207]

Thank you, @spotifyjosh, for (finally) providing a response, however disappointing, to the hundreds of requests, pleas, testimonials, complaints, and dire predictions of mass musician migration away from Spotify, in light of the deprecation of the SDK that supported integration with the Amazing Slow Downer app for playback, tempo and pitch adjustment.

Based on the wealth of comments you've read, and will read, I hope that you can successfully make an argument to the service's bean-counters and developers in favor of quickly restoring the functions so highly valued by your Premium musician-subscribers.

But we have work to do in the meantime.  Creatives will always find a way.  In this case, it's off to a competitive streaming service.  And goodbye, Spotify, for now.

[Jackleigh]

Agree with you totally. Cannt see why Spotify have turned off ASD. It’s a great tool I have been using to help me learn the intricacies of songs for my bands and I Cannt get the same quality of sound elsewhere. 

Will probably have to change to Apple Music if Spotify don’t turn it back on. 

hope it works out 

Please turn ASD back on Spotify

Thnaks

[dbartkow]

PLEASE keep supporting the SDK for us musicians to use. Spotify connected to the Amazing Slow Downer is critical for musicians like me. Please. Please. Please.

[mowritz]

I can only repeat what others have already written. Amazing Slow Downer is an extremly valuable app and the main reason why I use Spotify. Please reconsider your decision!

[mowritz]

I can only repeat what others have written. Amazing Slow Downer is an extremly valuable app and the main reason why I use Spotify. Please reconsider your decision!

[Jim91]

Professional musician - Spotify/Amazing Slow Downer-relationship has been the main reason to !choose Spotify!

[1243130695]

I have used ASD for the past 7 years with Spotify. It is a fantastic app for learning music and only encourages more plays of Spotify, benefitting both artists and Spotify alike. This makes no sense and I urge Spotify management (wherever you are) to reinstate Amazing Slow Downer compatibility.