My role

UX designer (solo project), UX research

Timeline

June - August 2022 (2 months)

Tools

Figma, Notion, octopus.do

Click on comments for foot notes!

Framing the Problem

Algorithmic reccomendation systems in streaming services prevent users from diversifying their music taste.

• The ease and convenience of streaming service reccomendation systems make the user dependent on them for music discovery.
• The abundance of options and ease of access fail to challenge user’s tastes, causing decision paralysis and close mindedness.

Solution

Community-based music discovery.

On Spotify, users should discover music through each other, with minimal algorithmic aid. Allow users to put their account on slow- where they can tune into the live activity of the users they follow, but are limited in their ability to select and skip songs.

• Users should be able to tune in on friend activity on the mobile app and listen along in live time
• Users should toggle through streams, but not scrub or skip through songs
• User profiles should be more robust and include information about recent activity such as playlist curation and listening activity.
• ****Enable users to play music from one device without passing it around

White Paper Research

Research and Discovery

Abundance of choice in streaming causes decision paralysis.

Decision paralysis fits into the modern model of media distribution well. In the era of streaming, decision is an obligation, and it is exhausting. Drivers juggle with their phone at the wheel of a car, roadtrips that start communally and end with five pairs of airpods in full use; users have become increasingly intolerant of that which isn’t precisely what they want to hear at the time.