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Spotify calls out Apple for removing volume control for connected devices

Spotify app and earbud

Spotify users on iPhone who listen to music and podcasts via Spotify Connect will have to take a few extra steps in order to control the volume on their audio devices — Spotify seems unhappy about it.

According to Spotify, Apple has "discontinued" the technology that let Spotify users control their volume via the physical iPhone buttons when streaming to speakers, smart TVs, gaming consoles, and other devices via Spotify Connect.

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Users who try to use the physical iPhone buttons to turn the volume up and down will be served with a notification from Spotify letting users know they will need to use the volume slider within the Spotify app. Clicking on this "Want to change the volume?" notification will take Spotify users to the slider in the app.

This change will officially roll out on September 3, but some users are reporting that they are already being sent the notification when trying to change their volume.

Spotify new volume controls
An example of the Spotify notification when trying to use the physical iPhone buttons and what the Spotify app volume slider looks like. Credit: Spotify

Spotify and Apple continue their feud

In its update, Spotify makes it clear that Apple is responsible for making things a bit more difficult for its iPhone-owning users.

"Apple has discontinued the technology that enables Spotify to control volume for connected devices using the volume buttons on the device," Spotify says on its support page for Spotify Connect. "While we work with them on a solution, you can use the Spotify app to easily adjust the volume on your connected device."

Mashable reached out to Apple for comment and will update this piece when we hear back.

As The Verge points out, Apple's changes have resulted in random volume spikes as well as other bugs for Spotify users, which led to Spotify altering how users can control the volume. The Sonos app made a similar change earlier this year after its users experienced similar problems.

"We’ve made requests to Apple to introduce a similar solution to what they offer users on HomePod and Apple TV for app developers who control non-Apple media devices," the Verge reports Spotify saying. "Apple has told us that they require apps to integrate into HomePod in order to access the technology that controls volume on iPhones."

While this specific volume control issue between these two industry behemoths may seem minor overall, it's actually just one more issue between Spotify and Apple in a larger ongoing feud.

Earlier this year, Apple was hit with a $2 billion fine in the EU after Spotify filed a complaint against the iPhone-maker over its policies prohibiting app makers from sending users outside of Apple's official App Store in order to sign up for subscription services.

In response, Apple published a public statement criticizing Spotify for using all of Apple's tools to run the iPhone app without paying the company.

In the statement, Apple pointed out that the company works with Spotify to ensure that its app works with "Siri, CarPlay, Apple Watch, AirPlay, Widgets, and more." But it now appears that Spotify volume controls via the iPhone's physical buttons are no longer included on that list.



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