Spotify has announced the withdrawal of its Car View feature. It was introduced in early 2019 to reduce distraction and make the app easier to manage while driving. At the moment, it is uncertain whether it is removed from all platforms or only Android. While some users may not miss the feature, many others are unhappy that it was removed without a reasonable replacement.
In October, a Spotify moderator responded to a question on the company's community site regarding why they had removed the option.
As stated by the moderator,
"We have removed the car display function. But it doesn't mean we won't continue to work on ways to make it better for our consumers to listen to Spotify while driving. On the other hand, we're always looking for innovative methods to make in-car audio even better. Think of taking your eyes off the road as a necessary step to make future advancements in the car industry.
For the time being, we ask that you be patient with us. Hands-free listening is an option while we're working on improving the experience. You may also use Google Maps while listening to Spotify with this functionality. You may do this by linking your Spotify and Google accounts and saying, "Hey Google, play Spotify."
"We're always looking for new ways to improve in-car listening," the company says. Another moderator noted that Spotify was "also removing certain functionality, such as [its] in-car Now Playing View for Android," to create place for future features.
According to Android Police, this approach has upset many users, who claim that the removal of Car View has made it more difficult for them to use Spotify securely while driving. As a result, some have claimed that Spotify removed Car View to promote its $80 Car Thing device, which functions as a display and remote control for the music streaming service.
