Spotify says the goal of releasing such a feature is to give users more control over listening to the music. The app currently has one button that is used for both shuffle and play. However, the new buttons make it easier for premium users to control their playlist queue. “This new change will allow you to choose the mode you prefer at the top of playlists and albums and listen to the way you want to,” Spotify says. “Whether you love the joy of the unexpected with Shuffle mode, or prefer listening to tunes in order by simply pressing Play, Spotify has you covered.”
Spotify offers dedicated buttons for shuffle and play- of course, for premium subscribers only
Spotify’s combined shuffle/play button previously created dissatisfaction among some famous artists. The artists claim that they expect fans to listen to their album in the original running order. However, the combined shuffle/play button doesn’t allow for this. Last year, Adele tweeted, “We don’t create albums with so much care and thought into our track listing for no reason.” These complaints forced Spotify to put a play button by default on album pages. The premium subscribers are now receiving this feature for the whole app. As Spotify says, “From the moment you hit play on Spotify, you decide the way you want to hear your favorite playlists or that new album you’re obsessed with.” While Spotify’s effort to turn its regular users into premium subscribers is respectable, using shuffle/play buttons to make a difference between paid and unpaid users was perhaps a bit strange. The company has recently announced that it expects to reach 450 million users by October. Also, it wants to enter the areas of business, like audiobooks.
