Skip to main content
Grrr
Contributor I
February 19, 2023
Answered

Unable to play BBC Stations though Google Assistant defaults to Tunein

  • February 19, 2023
  • 7 replies
  • 534 views

Any update on this? When will it work? It has been a long time.

    This topic has been closed for further comments. You can use the search bar to find a similar topic, or create a new one by clicking Create Topic at the top of the page.
    Best answer by Sotiris C.

    Hello @Grrr, welcome to Sonos Community!

    Please have a look here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/help/questions/playback-issues/sonos-help

    While Alexa works on Sonos devices which are voice enabled, BBC Sounds is not yet supported using Google Assistant. However, we are in discussion with Google and Sonos to find a solution and enable this feature. 

    You will need to reach out to Google, as they are responsible for the integration of Google Assistant on Sonos and its features.

    Apologies for the late response and I hope this helps.

    7 replies

    Sotiris C.
    Sotiris C.Answer
    Sonos Staff
    February 24, 2023

    Hello @Grrr, welcome to Sonos Community!

    Please have a look here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/help/questions/playback-issues/sonos-help

    While Alexa works on Sonos devices which are voice enabled, BBC Sounds is not yet supported using Google Assistant. However, we are in discussion with Google and Sonos to find a solution and enable this feature. 

    You will need to reach out to Google, as they are responsible for the integration of Google Assistant on Sonos and its features.

    Apologies for the late response and I hope this helps.

    Leaving a like and marking Best Answer might make someone's day. Who knows, that someone might be you.
    GrrrAuthor
    Contributor I
    February 24, 2023

    I suspect that since Google assistant does work with BBC sounds on Google's own devices just not on Sonos, Google probably don't give a hoot! Is there really nothing Sonos can do about this? It is difficult to understand why this is solely Google's responsibility when it affects only Sonos.

    dsw
    Trending Lyricist I
    February 24, 2023

    Hello @Grrr, welcome to Sonos Community!

    Please have a look here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/help/questions/playback-issues/sonos-help

    While Alexa works on Sonos devices which are voice enabled, BBC Sounds is not yet supported using Google Assistant. However, we are in discussion with Google and Sonos to find a solution and enable this feature. 

    You will need to reach out to Google, as they are responsible for the integration of Google Assistant on Sonos and its features.

    Apologies for the late response and I hope this helps.

    Given that the article you linked to says the BBC are in discussions with Sonos and Google the responsibility doesn’t solely lie with Google, and given that the issue has been ongoing for >1 year it would seem reasonable for Sonos to provide an update to the community on it.

    AynsleyB
    Contributor I
    February 27, 2023

    Following - I also find this very frustrating and it’s been going on way too long. For a feature that used to work and now doesn’t there seems to be no emphasis on getting it fixed.

    dsw
    Trending Lyricist I
    March 2, 2023

    Further to this, an update from a BBC Sounds Product Manager in another thread confirms that the blocker here is in fact Sonos!

    AynsleyB
    Contributor I
    March 2, 2023

    As usual, the ‘it’s not our fault’ baton is being passed around. Very disappointed in Sonos about this as I too have spent many thousands of pounds over the years 😡

     

    The team behind my old Squeezebox system would have found a way to make it work within a few weeks!

    Greendoris
    Contributor I
    March 6, 2023

    It’s rubbish. Because of the BBC moving to bbc sounds I have started to ditch my old Panasonic allplay systems and gone to the so called premium Sonos only to find such a BASIC function like play BBC radio 2 from Google Assistant fails to work and plays BBC wales which remains on Tunein at the moment!!!

    So of course the root cause is the BBC moving to their own platform but FFS why can’t Sonos and Google sort out this simple issue and get google assistance playing from BBC sounds. 

    And well done BBC for causing more landfill by not supporting Tunein and the old steaming stations causing loads of people to start ditching very good systems. The Green policy makers at the BBC have failed!!

    Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement