Spotify has expanded its Group Sessions listening feature to allow remote listening with four other people at the same time, anywhere in the world.
The streaming giant first unveiled Group Sessions back in May, though it required users to be in the immediate vicinity of each other. Users were forced to scan a joint barcode generated by the host user’s profile, where they could then add, remove, play and skip tracks in a shared queue.
Now, groups of two to five people can listen to a remote Group Session by a simple “Join” link sent out through a messaging app or social media. The host can generate the link via the “Connect” menu in the Spotify app.
Once connected, Group Sessions functions much the same as before; users add, remove, play and skip tracks in the shared queue, reflected across all devices.
The feature is currently only available to premium subscribers, and remains in public beta as it continues to be tested and developed.
Tech Crunch reports the feature began in development last year and was originally intended as a party mode to capture the attention of university students.
During the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, this became less practical and Group Sessions was instead marketed as a solution to enjoying music together under social distancing requirements.