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stevewest11
Contributor I
Apr 23, 2026 4:39 PM UTC
Answered

Ads on Turn On

Why am I hearing adverts when I switch my Sonos on that is pre programmed to play Heart Berkshire via their global app. This also happened with Tunein but stopped when I move to global but it has started again

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jgatie
jgatieAnswer
Apr 24, 2026 12:54 PM UTC

Any “free” radio service has to pay the bills for licensing and distribution of their content.  So they are going to insert ads when and where they can.  One of the techniques they use is to insert an ad when someone connects to their service, before the content is played.  Aside from Sonos Radio, Sonos has no control over the content, it is up to the service provider.  You could complain to Heart Radio, but as I said, they are trying to keep the lights on, so I’m not sure how far your complaint will get you. 

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jgatie
jgatieAnswer
Apr 24, 2026 12:54 PM UTC

Any “free” radio service has to pay the bills for licensing and distribution of their content.  So they are going to insert ads when and where they can.  One of the techniques they use is to insert an ad when someone connects to their service, before the content is played.  Aside from Sonos Radio, Sonos has no control over the content, it is up to the service provider.  You could complain to Heart Radio, but as I said, they are trying to keep the lights on, so I’m not sure how far your complaint will get you. 

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    Anonymous
    Apr 24, 2026 3:47 PM UTC

    The words 'commercial advertising' are of relevance:

    Ads can not be turned off currently.

    Heart would need to stop advertising or maybe start to offer an ad-free subscription service...

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      jgatie
      jgatie
      Apr 24, 2026 4:02 PM UTC

      The words 'commercial advertising' are of relevance:

      Ads can not be turned off currently.

      Heart would need to stop advertising or maybe start to offer an ad-free subscription service...

       

      Correct, but sometime the curator service (TuneIn, Heart Radio) has their own ads that are separate from the actual broadcast content; often inserted before the content itself starts to stream. I believe this type of ad, inserted by Heart Radio, is the advertising in discussion here. 

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        fatii9898
        Lyricist I
        Apr 28, 2026 1:25 PM UTC

        Since the stream is provided by a third-party service, the ads are typically injected by the broadcaster to cover licensing and operational costs. Sonos itself doesn’t control or filter that content. If it’s becoming frequent, the only real option would be checking if the station offers an ad-free premium stream or contacting the provider for clarification.

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