Spotify Group Session Allows 5 People to Listen Together Remotely; Chromecast Support Added to Desktop App, Web Client

Spotify's Group Session beta allows users to stream music or podcasts together with friends remotely. It is available for Premium users who can generate sharable links and listen with their friends no matter where they are in real-time. The new feature allows up to five people to listen together at a time. As per Spotify's press release, the feature was implemented on July 28 and allows two to five people to stream together. Further, Spotify desktop app and Web client have finally got standalone Chromecast support.

The companystatedthat the beta Group Session feature allows Spotify Premium users to generate a shareable link that they can send over any messaging app to invite their friends to the group. Users can also share a scan code with guests. All members of the group will need to be Premium members. Notably, this feature was first implemented in May, but only worked when people were in the same space.

To start a Group Session:

1. Open Spotify and play something2. Tap on theConnect to a deviceicon3. Tap onStart Sessionunder theStart a group Sessionoption4. Tap onInvite Friendsand share the link using the apps listed5. Or tap onCopy Linkto choose a different method of sharing

Additionally, according to the Spotify communityforum, the desktop app and Web client have got standalone support forChromecast. Initially, the desktop app and Web client needed the iOS or Android app to be able to connect to Chromecast, but now they can do it independently.

The option is available on the desktop client but not on the Windows app which means the company is rolling out the feature in stages. We tried it on the Web client and were able to play music through a Google Home speaker.

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