Ask and you shall receive. After several complaints from users, Spotify has finally given in and made separate Shuffle and Play buttons at the top of the interface. If you don’t see the Shuffle icon when you update the app, that’s probably because you don’t have the Premium subscription. That’s right; you need to pay for the new button.
The new update isn’t a new concept. Users have been complaining for months now that the Play/Shuffle combination wasn’t working properly for them. The single button was used to switch between shuffle and play, but it wouldn’t always toggle properly. Also, this feature was missing in the desktop version with only a Play feature.
To quell the concerns, Spotify has announced that a new update will feature both the Play and Shuffle buttons separately. However, you’ll only see the Play button if you don’t have a Premium subscription. Why would you pay for a silly little button, you may ask?
According to Shopify, the company sees it as an advanced function to the standard Play feature. Standard users can play the songs in the normal order, but the Premium version upgrades it so you can change the order. Still, it’s odd to pay for a feature that other music apps like YouTube Music offers for free.
It’s not too difficult to follow the train of thought here. Spotify saw a need in the community, followed by someone saying there’s an opportunity here to get more Premium subscribers. 630 complaints = 630 potentially new subscribers = more money for the company. Either that, or the guy developing the button wanted royalties for it.
At least we’ll see Spotify upgrade the audiobook feature soon. Based on the above movement, don’t be surprised if some Premium options appear there, too.
