Free music throughout your home with Spotify

For those of you who haven't come across Spotify before, may you be wondering what this is all about? Well Spotify is a free internet music streaming service that lets you play unlimited tracks with the addition of occasional ads. The ads are quite discreet, but for a monthly subscription (£ 10 in the UK) you get unlimited tracks without ads. The best thing about Spotify is that you can create and edit your own playlists like you can in iTunes but without having to buy the real music. Spotify has also introduced a new feature that allows you to save your tracks on your computer so you can play them without Internet access. Spotify's new iPhone app will even let you stream and save free music right to your iPhone!

Sure, Spotify is great on your laptop or PC, but what if you want to play that music through your home audio system? To integrate Spotify into a home audio system, you need a standalone solution that can access Spotify without your PC. Fortunately, Free Spotify Premium released its own API package that allows software developers to write their own custom Spotify software. What does this mean? Well, the API will allow you to create custom software applications to interact with the Spotify client. Many great apps have already been created, most are based on sharing playlists between users, but it can go further. For example, there is an application that allows you to stream Spotify to your hi-fi via Apple Airport and the Airtunes adapter.

This will allow you to play Spotify music on your hi-fi, but you will still need your laptop / PC and it lacks the convenience of a larger integrated system for the entire home. What is possible is to combine Spotify with a server application that integrates with any number of remote controls, keyboards or touch panels at home. One solution is to build a separate box that acts as a Spotify client and a tcp server that can be controlled from any number of ethernet devices throughout the home. The unit can be stored in a cabinet or even in a rack mounted on an existing AV hub. The box can be directly connected to a TV or music system, but it can also be connected to a whole house AV system, so Spotify music streaming can be switched to any room in the house.

Many of Spotify's great features can be easily incorporated into convenient handheld controls. Examples of what's possible include: a Spotify search feature that lets you search by track, album, and artist. You can also create a continuous menu system that allows you to search among these categories. You can also create and edit playlists from your searches, and even incorporate other people's playlists. Just like Spotify's internet browser, cover art, album and artist information and even a list of recommended artists based on your current music choices are possible!