Stop the audio pause when launching mobile application
Our patrons have expressed a desire for our mobile app to integrate with their audiobook and music streaming services in such a way that playback is not interrupted when they open the mobile app. This means that if a patron has an audiobook or music playing on their device, it should continue uninterrupted when they launch our app, rather than pausing or stopping as it currently does.
Derek Brown
shared this idea
-
Danielle Reynolds
commented
This has affected me. There have been plenty of times I am listening to an audiobook & a book title was mentioned. I go to open our app to search for the title, but it stops what I was listening to. It's frustrating from a UX standpoint.
-
Eric Young
commented
We have confirmed this behavior during testing. When Vega Mobile is launched on iOS, any audio playing from another app such as Apple Music, Freegal Music, or Spotify stops immediately. On Android, background audio continues without interruption.
This difference is due to how iOS handles audio sessions. To achieve consistency across platforms, the iOS app would need to be configured to allow mixing with other audio so that background playback continues unless the user starts audio within Vega Mobile. See https://developer.apple.com/documentation/avfaudio/avaudiosession for more details.
Improving this would create a better experience for patrons who listen to music or audiobooks while browsing library services. We fully support this enhancement and encourage prioritizing it for future releases.