Spotify Stations, the streaming service’s lightweight listening app providing easy accessibility to curated playlists, is shutting down on Might 16. The corporate instructed TechCrunch that the app and internet participant will now not be accessible after this date. The Stations app was initially designed for many who need a extra radio-like expertise, somewhat than having to hunt out music or customise their very own playlists. Spotify Stations first launched in Australia in 2018 and later rolled out within the United States in 2019.
“At Spotify, we routinely conduct numerous experiments to create higher listening experiences for our customers,” a spokesperson for Spotify mentioned in a press release to TechCrunch. “A few of these exams find yourself paving the way in which for our broader person expertise and others serve solely as an vital studying. Our Spotify Stations Beta was a kind of exams. We will likely be sunsetting the present characteristic, however customers will be capable of simply switch their favourite stations and revel in an analogous radio expertise immediately inside the Spotify app.”
Spotify hasn’t elaborated on the rationale behind its determination to close down Stations, however notes that customers can transfer all of their favourite stations to the principle Spotify app to proceed listening to them. The corporate says that whereas it doesn’t take sunsetting providers evenly, Spotify Radio gives an analogous listening expertise to Stations so listeners can use that as a substitute. Spotify Radio is a characteristic in the principle app that creates a playlist based mostly on any music, album, playlist or artist you choose.
Spotify Stations has been thought-about an experiment by Spotify, and by some others, a Pandora copycat because of its assist for immediate music playback at launch. Spotify Stations is interesting to those that desire a less complicated person interface, as Spotify’s flagship app’s look-and-feel isn’t one thing that everybody likes. The app offered a minimalist listening expertise that appears to have appealed to some customers.
As of Friday morning, the Stations app has disappeared from each the iOS App Retailer and the Google Play Retailer, however the app itself appears to be purposeful in the interim to permit present customers to maneuver their stations to the principle app.
The information comes as Spotify has been making some adjustments to its apps. Final month, Spotify announced it will integrate the reside audio capabilities from its companion app, Spotify Greenroom, inside the principle Spotify streaming app. Greenroom can even rebrand as “Spotify Reside” as a part of these adjustments. At launch, Spotify’s principal app will solely characteristic reside content material from choose unique programming, whereas the standalone Spotify Reside app will proceed to permit impartial creators to go reside.
