How to NOT have subsequent podcast episodes play automatically when another one ends

[bramweiser]

Plan

Free/Premium

Country

USA

Device

Samsung Galaxy 7

Operating System

Android v8.0

My Question or Issue

Hi, and thanks for reading my post.

Like many others, I'm sure, I've subscribed to several podcasts and have downloaded episodes from many of them.

However, I don't want another episode in my downloads (or even in a podcast's list, if I hadn't yet downloaded it) to play automatically once another one ends.

I've already "slid" the AutoPlay setting to gray but that isn't stopping this from happening.

I looked around and couldn't find another thing to check, toggle, etc., but might you have thoughts of where else I should look?

If so, please let me know, and thanks again,

Bram Weiser

[Jeremy]

Hi there @bramweiser,

Thank you for your post here in the Community. We're happy to help.

Can you perform a clean reinstall of the app? This will make sure there's no old cache files causing this.

If that doesn't do the trick, can you try from another device to see if the issue persist?

We'll keep an eye out for your reply.

Take care!

[bramweiser]

Thanks for writing back, @Jeremy.

I can try a clean reinstall but was hoping there's a setting somewhere that would stop this behavior from occurring.  Is there such a thing (for those with "Free" accounts, please, not Premium)?

Also, I've been keeping the cache clear so I'm not sure if this is the reason.

In addition, no, sorry, I have just one (1) device so I don't think I can test the "other device" theory but, as noted above, can try the "clean reinstall" one if no setting exists that I should be seeking out.

Thanks again,

Bram Weiser

[Mihail]

Hey @bramweiser,

Thanks for getting back to us.

Apologies for the confusion, currently there isn't a system setting where you can stop the next item in a list from playing. If you'd like this feature introduced, we'd recommend you take a look in our Idea Exchange and see if someone has already submitted an idea for this feature to be added  and if not post your own.

In the meantime, as a possible workaround you can use the Sleep Timer function and select Stop audio in End of episode. It's accessible via the moon icon in the lower right corner of the Now Playing View. That way, nothing will be played once you finish a podcast episode.

Hope this info is useful. Let us know if you have any questions. 

[bramweiser]

Thank you for writing back, @Mihail.

Is what you spoke of necessary to be done with each(!) episode I play, or, like most other settings, something I (or other users) would do once and would then stay in place unless/until it was changed sometime later (i.e., "set it and forget it")?

Also, I could have sworn that something like what I described (e.g., a toggle related to a podcast that enabled/prevented another episode from playing once one was done) actually existed somewhere (perhaps "inside" a given podcast after it got favorited/bookmarked, if not somewhere else), or am I thinking of something else (or maybe even confusing this as a Spotify feature with something I might have seen in a different, competing app)?

Thanks again,

Bram Weiser

[Jeremy]

Hi again @bramweiser,

Thank you for your reply and once again, apologies for the confusion.

You can suggest an idea of the solution would think be best for you.

We can confirm that it's not possible to toggle that off. We're always testing things by adding or removing features to make Spotify better overall and we’re constantly aiming to improve our features. We’re sorry that this means you’re not able to use Spotify like you wish to do at the moment.

You can read more about how your feedback reaches Spotify here.

Let us know if we can help you with anything else. 

Take care!

[bramweiser]

Thanks for writing back, @Jeremy.

@Mihail, I tried your workaround and it seemed to work although, as Jeremy noted, it's not a universal solution and IS therefore apparently something that needs to be done on an episode-by-episode basis whenever I want to listen to it.  There really needs to be a better way than that, though...

I appreciate your idea about ideas, Jeremy, but I'm pessimistic, to be honest, that any single proposal would necessarily lead to progress, and soon, though I hope I'd be proven wrong.

Thanks again to both of you for your timely follow-ups,

Bram Weiser

[Ver]

Hey @bramweiser,

Thanks for keeping us in the loop 🙂

Glad to hear that the workaround is working.

As @Mihail and @Jeremy mentioned it's a good idea to have a look in our Idea Exchange to see if someone else has already made a similar suggestion. If there isn't one, you can give these steps a go and submit your idea.  That way other users can support it. Keep in mind the higher the number of votes an idea gets, the more likely it is for it to be implemented.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We'll be happy to help.

[bramweiser]

Thanks, @Ver.

I did go to the Idea Exchange and didn't see one like mine so I posted it.  Still, I hope that Spotify might explore and implement ideas based on their merit and not based so much on popularity.  This one seems simple enough and could prove beneficial to users other than just me, so I'm hopeful that users will see it soon in a Spotify update.

Also, you're welcome, but please read all that I wrote...the workaround works, but only in an episode-by-episode way which limits its effectiveness.  A more global (app-wide) solution is needed here, instead.

Thanks again,

Bram Weiser