I was at a conference the other week and Spotify had a Keynote. They talked about the tradeoff between playing "diverse songs" and "consistent songs". It is a hard problem to solve.
When you start your listening session they try and predict how long you are going going listen (based on your past history and time of day). If you are probably going to listen for a while, they are more risky and might play something "different". Playing different stuff is risky (short term) because you MIGHT not like it. Playing the same stuff is safe (short term) because they know you will like it - BUT people will eventually go searching for something new, so they have to risk diversity eventually.
Exactly. There's no reason the "personlized" Daily Mixes can't be built/labeled to indicate "acaccuracy" rate. It annoys me when I'm in the mood for new or different - which is 60% of the time - and all the new Daily Mixes feel like the day / week before.
I'd love a personalized playlist titled "Curveballs" that contined things different and/or challenging.
When you start your listening session they try and predict how long you are going going listen (based on your past history and time of day). If you are probably going to listen for a while, they are more risky and might play something "different". Playing different stuff is risky (short term) because you MIGHT not like it. Playing the same stuff is safe (short term) because they know you will like it - BUT people will eventually go searching for something new, so they have to risk diversity eventually.