Spotify support is now landing on the original Chromecast via firmware update

We first reported last month that Google was bringing Spotify support to the Chromecast, and those who already have the second-generation Chromecast in their possession (like myself) have probably been toying with the feature for a while now. Google did mention at its event last month, however, that support for the streaming service would be coming to the first-generation Chromecast at some point within a few weeks. It looks like that update is now rolling out…

If you have a first-gen Chromecast, all you have to do to force the update is power cycle the device. If the update was already downloaded, the device should quickly install it before booting back up, and if it hasn’t downloaded yet, power cycling can sometimes trigger that to happen. If you’ve power cycled and still aren’t seeing the update, you probably already have it (in which case check your Spotify app), or it just hasn’t arrived quite yet (in which case be patient).

Interestingly, Spotify didn’t simply add Chromecast support to its app like many others have. If that was the case, Spotify could have added the feature years ago. What seems to have happened in this case — hence why this update is required — is that Spotify has convinced Google to add Spotify Connect support to the Chromecast. Whether this be for licensing reasons or simply a security measure, I’m glad that Google complied and is giving the company special treatment.