Apple’s HomePod series may have gotten a boost in functionality if Spotify had implemented Siri support in their service. However, Spotify has no plans of integrating with the smart speaker’s voice assistant anytime soon, according to Bloomberg. Although a support entry for the feature in the HomePod community has gained almost 6,000 likes, Spotify allegedly does not receive enough requests for the feature.
Apple did not provide external music service support during the HomePod’s launch but has gradually allowed Siri to play music from non-Apple services since 2019, even on the HomePod. Spotify developers had also failed to submit the feature for the smart speaker, despite available APIs. Instead, the music service is expected to continue using Apple’s AirPlay 2 transmission technology, which can control the HomePod from the iOS app – a feature that is currently unsupported despite available APIs.
When asked about integration with the HomePod, Spotify expressed its commitment to supporting AirPlay 2 transmission technology, but there’s no word on when that would happen. The company is also involved in the EU Commission’s ongoing competition proceedings against Apple, which has been restricted to focus solely on Apple’s prohibition of direct alternatives to in-app subscription options for developers and companies in the music segment – a practice that the European Union considers unfair. However, the Commission concluded that Apple is not abusing any dominant market position by using the in-app payment interface.
