Inability to play podcasts on Android

  • staff-joey8 · Staff ·

    We recently had the following situation reported to us:

    I subscribed to several shows, downloading numerous episodes of each and, almost tragically, now pocket cast will not play any of them regardless of any variable.

    I have gone through all the actions recommended (and irrelevant), changing all sorts of phone settings suggested and not, twice. It just will not play episodes, whether downloaded or streaming (yes, the phone is connected to the internet without restraints), in a queue or not.

    When I press the play button on an episode, the button changes, looking as it would if a podcast were being played (i.e., the two vertical lines indicate a pause button.) Except, it stays at zero. No time ever elapses. I can skip ahead and back to X position, but nothing ever actually plays.

    In a case like this, the first step would be to restart your device. If that makes no difference, can you let us know:

    • Do the episodes download successfully? Is it that it just doesn’t play them, or does downloading also not work?
    • Do you see any error messages?
    • Has this happened on all podcasts, or just specific ones?

    The important question is whether this happens with all podcasts, or just specific ones. Playback errors can occur when the podcast episode is in a format that is not supported on your device, your device has no storage space left, issues with the podcast host, etc.
    Once we have the additional information, we’ll be able to guide you further :)

  • Unknown's avatar
    ivan22233 · Member ·

    Hello. I have the same issue

    A couple months ago, there were couple podcasts, that didn’t played. But now, count of such podcasts is increases. I try to download podcasts instead of playing, but it doesn’t work anyway

    Here is the part of the app log

    E 15/3 09:12:15 Download stopped, will retry with Requires unmetered (WiFi). Run later. The first conditional b903d9fe-7bd1-47a2-a31b-885310b1f831 – java.lang.RuntimeException: au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask$DownloadFailed: This episode may have been moved or deleted. Contact the podcast author.
    I 15/3 09:12:17 Worker Downloading episode Caught red-handed 5c6c121b-1d59-45a4-bdb0-ca17b51e966a
    E 15/3 09:12:18 Download failed http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-low/proto/http/vpid/p0f8ldlf.mp3
    java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:215)
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:144)
    at qq.p.read(JvmOkio.kt:46)
    at qq.a$d.read(AsyncTimeout.kt:13)
    at qq.b0.e(RealBufferedSource.kt:59)
    at qq.b0.R(RealBufferedSource.kt:35)
    at jq.a.b(HeadersReader.kt:5)
    at jq.b.e(Http1ExchangeCodec.kt:17)
    at hq.c.p(Exchange.kt:3)
    at iq.b.a(CallServerInterceptor.kt:146)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at hq.a.a(ConnectInterceptor.kt:33)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at fq.a.a(CacheInterceptor.kt:195)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.a.a(BridgeInterceptor.kt:168)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.j.a(RetryAndFollowUpInterceptor.kt:35)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at eo.a.a(SentryOkHttpInterceptor.kt:160)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at hq.e.q(RealCall.kt:147)
    at hq.e.execute(RealCall.kt:28)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.F(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:645)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.E(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:56)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.v(Unknown Source:0)
    at i9.b.a(Unknown Source:2)
    at mn.b0.subscribeActual(ObservableCreate.java:11)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.n0.subscribeActual(ObservableDoOnEach.java:18)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.m1.y(ObservableIgnoreElementsCompletable.java:8)
    at ym.b.a(Completable.java:15)
    at ym.b.h(Completable.java:6)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.u(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:342)
    at androidx.work.Worker$a.run(Worker.java:3)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor.runWorker(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:1167)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor$Worker.run(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:641)
    at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:923)
    Suppressed: java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
    … 39 more

    E 15/3 09:12:18 Download stopped, will retry with Requires unmetered (WiFi). Run later. Caught red-handed 5c6c121b-1d59-45a4-bdb0-ca17b51e966a – java.lang.RuntimeException: au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask$DownloadFailed: This episode may have been moved or deleted. Contact the podcast author.
    I 15/3 09:12:28 Worker Downloading episode Ups and Downs, Highs and Lows – March 09, 2023 1091b120-9d52-4130-ba8c-d79569c3a98d
    E 15/3 09:12:29 Download failed https://av.voanews.com/clips/VLE/2023/03/09/01000000-0aff-0242-6909-08db20d0dbbc_hq.mp3
    java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:215)
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:144)
    at com.android.org.conscrypt.ConscryptEngineSocket$SSLInputStream.readFromSocket(ConscryptEngineSocket.java:945)
    at com.android.org.conscrypt.ConscryptEngineSocket$SSLInputStream.processDataFromSocket(ConscryptEngineSocket.java:909)
    at com.android.org.conscrypt.ConscryptEngineSocket$SSLInputStream.-$$Nest$mprocessDataFromSocket(Unknown Source:0)
    at com.android.org.conscrypt.ConscryptEngineSocket.doHandshake(ConscryptEngineSocket.java:241)
    at com.android.org.conscrypt.ConscryptEngineSocket.startHandshake(ConscryptEngineSocket.java:220)
    at hq.f.i(RealConnection.kt:73)
    at hq.f.m(RealConnection.kt:53)
    at hq.f.f(RealConnection.kt:17)
    at hq.d.b(ExchangeFinder.kt:275)
    at hq.d.c(ExchangeFinder.kt:1)
    at hq.d.a(ExchangeFinder.kt:52)
    at hq.e.r(RealCall.kt:32)
    at hq.a.a(ConnectInterceptor.kt:12)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at fq.a.a(CacheInterceptor.kt:195)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.a.a(BridgeInterceptor.kt:168)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.j.a(RetryAndFollowUpInterceptor.kt:35)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at eo.a.a(SentryOkHttpInterceptor.kt:160)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at hq.e.q(RealCall.kt:147)
    at hq.e.execute(RealCall.kt:28)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.F(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:645)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.E(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:56)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.v(Unknown Source:0)
    at i9.b.a(Unknown Source:2)
    at mn.b0.subscribeActual(ObservableCreate.java:11)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.n0.subscribeActual(ObservableDoOnEach.java:18)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.m1.y(ObservableIgnoreElementsCompletable.java:8)
    at ym.b.a(Completable.java:15)
    at ym.b.h(Completable.java:6)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.u(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:342)
    at androidx.work.Worker$a.run(Worker.java:3)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor.runWorker(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:1167)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor$Worker.run(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:641)
    at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:923)

    E 15/3 09:12:29 Download stopped, will retry with Requires unmetered (WiFi). Run later. Ups and Downs, Highs and Lows – March 09, 2023 1091b120-9d52-4130-ba8c-d79569c3a98d – java.lang.RuntimeException: au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask$DownloadFailed: This episode may have been moved or deleted. Contact the podcast author.
    I 15/3 09:12:37 Worker Downloading episode How to talk to a climate denier e1ee0edc-ff88-4dc5-a2dd-32c0bf1a3b52
    E 15/3 09:12:37 Download failed http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-low/proto/http/vpid/p0f7p1b2.mp3
    java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:215)
    at java.net.SocketInputStream.read(SocketInputStream.java:144)
    at qq.p.read(JvmOkio.kt:46)
    at qq.a$d.read(AsyncTimeout.kt:13)
    at qq.b0.e(RealBufferedSource.kt:59)
    at qq.b0.R(RealBufferedSource.kt:35)
    at jq.a.b(HeadersReader.kt:5)
    at jq.b.e(Http1ExchangeCodec.kt:17)
    at hq.c.p(Exchange.kt:3)
    at iq.b.a(CallServerInterceptor.kt:146)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at hq.a.a(ConnectInterceptor.kt:33)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at fq.a.a(CacheInterceptor.kt:195)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.a.a(BridgeInterceptor.kt:168)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at iq.j.a(RetryAndFollowUpInterceptor.kt:35)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at eo.a.a(SentryOkHttpInterceptor.kt:160)
    at iq.g.b(RealInterceptorChain.kt:163)
    at hq.e.q(RealCall.kt:147)
    at hq.e.execute(RealCall.kt:28)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.F(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:645)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.E(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:56)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.v(Unknown Source:0)
    at i9.b.a(Unknown Source:2)
    at mn.b0.subscribeActual(ObservableCreate.java:11)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.n0.subscribeActual(ObservableDoOnEach.java:18)
    at ym.p.subscribe(Observable.java:14)
    at mn.m1.y(ObservableIgnoreElementsCompletable.java:8)
    at ym.b.a(Completable.java:15)
    at ym.b.h(Completable.java:6)
    at au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask.u(DownloadEpisodeTask.kt:342)
    at androidx.work.Worker$a.run(Worker.java:3)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor.runWorker(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:1167)
    at java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor$Worker.run(ThreadPoolExecutor.java:641)
    at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:923)
    Suppressed: java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
    … 39 more

    E 15/3 09:12:37 Download stopped, will retry with Requires unmetered (WiFi). Run later. How to talk to a climate denier e1ee0edc-ff88-4dc5-a2dd-32c0bf1a3b52 – java.lang.RuntimeException: au.com.shiftyjelly.pocketcasts.repositories.download.task.DownloadEpisodeTask$DownloadFailed: This episode may have been moved or deleted. Contact the podcast author.

  • staff-joey8 · Staff ·

    Hi @ivan22233!

    Thanks for sharing that with us. The logs show us some interesting information, such as:

    • Downloads are being stopped since the app is set to download via unmetered (WiFi). This can happen if you’re connected to Mobile Data or have a metered WiFi network active. If that isn’t the case, make sure that you aren’t using a VPN or Firewall.
    • An invalid storage location is set in Pocket Casts. To check if this is the case, can you have a look to see if the storage location is set to “Phone” (in “Storage & data usage” settings)?

  • Unknown's avatar
    ivan22233 · Member ·

    Hello.

    No, i don’t use vpn nor firewall. Also, file location is right and there is enough space to save podcasts.

    I have full log file, but i don’t know, where i can put it

  • staff-joey8 · Staff ·

    Hi again, @ivan22233 :)

    Thanks for the follow-up. Our system seems to be blocking your replies with the full logs, but I still have access to them here.

    Having another look at the logs, we’re noticing issues relating to the Episode: Ups and Downs, Highs and Lows

    When we checked the actual podcast that this is from, we can’t seem to play it consistently when played via our web player either since the episode mp3 file gives us a 404 error. This is something that the podcast author would need to investigate since the file isn’t working properly.

    The same applies to other podcasts. The episode files would need to be accessible in order for Pocket Casts to be able to stream/download them.

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