Spotify has shut down several API endpoints

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

API changes and immediate impact

  • Spotify shut down several Web API endpoints immediately, while grandfathering existing apps with “extended mode” access.
  • Apps still in development mode and all new apps are affected; many hobby scripts used development keys and broke overnight.
  • Key losses include access to recommendation endpoints and the “Audio Features” / analysis endpoints used to get per-track attributes (energy, valence, danceability, etc.).
  • Some users note this also breaks improved integrations (e.g., HomeAssistant, custom playlist tools, jukebox-style apps).

Developer frustration and access model

  • Extended access requires an approval process; multiple commenters say it’s slow, opaque, and often stalls for months.
  • Many personal/utility projects never applied because they weren’t commercial, so they’re now locked out.
  • People criticize Spotify’s framing of the change as “security,” seeing it instead as reducing user value and third‑party freedom.

Music discovery, recommendations, and lost features

  • Several commenters used the API for graph‑style discovery (related artists networks), filtering by audio features, and custom radios; they report better discovery than Spotify’s built‑in tools.
  • Others find Spotify’s native recommendations decent or “fabulous,” while some say they became shallow, repetitive, or payola‑like over time.
  • LLMs as replacements for these APIs are widely doubted; audio analysis is seen as solvable, but not via generic LLMs, and recommendations are viewed as inherently hard.

Alternatives and self‑hosting

  • Suggestions include running personal music servers with tools like PlexAmp, Jellyfin, MusicBrainz Picard, beets, and ListenBrainz, plus buying from Bandcamp or similar.
  • Some point to MetaBrainz/ListenBrainz as open, recommendation‑oriented alternatives that are actively trying to fill gaps.
  • Reverse‑engineering efforts (e.g., librespot, unofficial clients like psst) are mentioned, but many rely on the now‑restricted endpoints.

Artist compensation and streaming economics

  • Long subthread debates whether streaming (especially Spotify’s pro‑rata model) is “terrible” for artists versus merely reflecting historic realities.
  • Touring as primary income is both defended and attacked, with detailed breakdowns arguing that mid‑level tours often barely break even.
  • Comparisons: Apple Music and Tidal are said to pay more per stream but may be subsidized or unprofitable; labels are repeatedly described as the main power brokers.

APIs, lock‑in, and broader trend

  • Multiple commenters link this move to a wider pattern: large platforms shutting or monetizing APIs (Twitter, Reddit, Deezer, YouTube Music) after growth phases end.
  • Some see this as classic “enshittification” and value extraction; others frame it as inevitable once unprofitable features are scrutinized.