How will I know it's fixed?

[dazza555]

Plan

Premium

Country

Australia

Device

Samsung Galaxy S10

Operating System

Android

My Question or Issue

There is already several posts on here about my particular issue which is steering wheel buttons not working while android auto is open. I have complained before about the buggy nature of your android app and over the years it has not improved. But how will I know when you have resolved this issue (or future issues for that matter)? I have never seen a reply to a topic saying we have fixed this issue in our latest update.

Recently though I settled on a set of features in your app and despite a few minor bugs that I can live with I've decided I'll stick with this version (8.5.83.1075 if it matters) and do away with your updates.

This version works in the way I expect with features I know. It might not do everything I want, but it plays music, works with Android auto and my car. You get that, I pay money and I get a service that works; an app to use said service that works; it works as I expect; It does what I pay for by working. The key point here is that it works, like a hammer beats in a nail, it works. I turn my phone on open the app and tap play and it works, it actually works. I can connect it to my car and it works. I can use headphones and it works. It just works, you know what I mean.

If experience is anything to go by though I really don't think you will ever truly grasp the concept I have iterated above but it won't be for lack of trying. However, moving on to the more prevalent issue at hand.

My question boils down to this: If you can't tell me when the bug I have is fixed why should I update?

You don't tell us when you have resolved a software issue on the forum. Users have asked for patch notes and you have denied them, you have even marked these requests as not right now. If I don't know that a bug is fixed why should I update? If I don't know that you have added a feature how will I know if I want it or if it even exists? When you buy a hammer you don't buy a box marked hammer only to get home, open it and find that it's a blow up toy? That's exactly what clicking that update button has become, I wonder if they've fixed this issue and what have they broken this time? I simply won't know.

Now I don't want the generic answer that I should always keep updates turned on because you're always making improvements. The fact is you haven't made a significant improvement since you allowed people to stream music, harsh but true. I want to know why you can't tell me when a bug is fixed.

I don't expect you to go around to every post and say "hey we fixed that problem in this update", it would be nice but I don't expect it. I would rather know what you did between one update to the next and the answer is patch notes, changelogs or release notes. Even school children are told to show their work during a test, why can't you?

Seriously though, this is not a feature request, this is a severe problem, I need to know how I can find out that you have fixed a bug before I update. We are all adults here so lets acknowledge the issue and keep users informed of what actions you will take to fix this issue.

• Why should I update?
• What are you changing between updates?
• What bugs are you fixing between updates?
• Where can I find out if my issue has been fixed with an update?

These are the key points, please answer them all, I am paying you after all.

[Ivan]

Hey @dazza555, 

Thanks for searching for the answer you need here! 
 

We recommend keeping Spotify updated to the latest version so you can get all recent feature updates and app improvements. 

The changes that come with each update may include new features suggested by our users, improved visual design and content additions.

As you mentioned, if users experience any issues our regular updates help solving them. The cycle of tracking and resolving an issue can be seen in our Ongoing Issues board where users are free to report what they've experienced in a dedicated thread moderated by us. This is where we announce when an issue has been resolved or will be resolved in a future update. 

Hope this helps. Let us know if you have any questions.  

[dazza555]

Thankyou for your response Ivan. I'm sad that you have just reiterated the very thing that I asked for you not to. The generic response to simply keep the app updated is not a sufficient response. You have missed every single point I asked at the end of my post with only a partial answer to my last point.

The ongoing issues section of the forum is very limited in what actually makes it over there. For instance the issue several users have reported of steering wheel controls no longer skipping songs within android auto is no where to be found.

I'm going to put it plainly, I want release notes or patch notes. The only assumption I can come to for these not being provided is that even your developers do not know what they are changing within the app during each update. This would explain why updates cause more issues than they solve.

Either be straight with me as a paying customer or prove me wrong and give us some release notes. I'm away from a wifi connection from days at a time and when I return home I have over a dozen apps updating simultaneously and more often than not after this update process some functionality within spotify will no longer work (such as sleep timer integration, alarm clock integration, android auto integration, etc). Without release notes it makes diagnosing which app the issue is with very difficult.

To use my steering wheel buttons not working as an example, both android auto and spotify updated together in late November. Now, not only could I not skip spotify songs but I could also not answer calls with the steering wheel buttons, google acknowledged the issue and I knew it was fixed in the January update because they told users what they had fixed, however the issue was still present with spotify because of an update you had released between the android auto updates. Initially I thought that Google had not actually fixed the issue but after several hours of troubleshooting I discovered the issue was now with your most recent app update. If I had release notes I would have been able to diagnose the issue quickly, report it to you accurately and roll back my spotify version to a working version while you worked on the issue.

So I'm asking for an honest answer, do your app developers know what they are changing between updates and if they are competent why can't you put out release notes? It's ok if your developers have little idea of what they are doing, the evidence already supports this conclusion.

PS: I do not mean for my response to come over as insulting or rude but my intention is to be direct. I hope you can pay me the same courtesy and be honest and direct with me. I want reasoning behind your answers, if spotify is simply hamstringing you moderators by telling you to give generic answers then tell me and let me take my issue further up the chain.

[Ivan]

Hey @dazza555, 

Thanks for getting back to us. 

The release or patch notes of the Spotify app aren't available as an in-app feature for now. We understand that many users want this feature implemented in the future and we thank you for sharing your thoughts about this. This always helps us improve the app in future updates. 

We recommend taking a look at this idea about a changelog following the app updates. Feel free to support the idea by adding your +VOTE and clicking on Subscribe in the three-dots menu at the top right corner next to the title. That'll make sure you stay up-to-date with any relevant updates about this. It’s also worth knowing that the higher the number of votes an idea gets, the more likely it is for the idea to be implemented. 

We always take new ideas and feedback into consideration to improve the app. Here you can read more on how ideas work.

We'll be one post away if you have any questions.