Senior Software Engineer - TV Playback (C++)

Spotify; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Spotify is seeking a skilled systems engineer to join the Native Playback team in London or Stockholm, focusing on TV playback experiences. You will design, build, and optimize the C++ integration layer that powers audio and video on TV devices running our Rust runtime.

You'll integrate with AVPlayer/ExoPlayer-like stacks, tackle buffering, ABR, and A/V sync, and work closely with platform and device teams to ship reliable playback across millions of users worldwide.

Qualifications

• Experience in low-level C++ systems, ideally in video or playback.
• Experience integrating native playback frameworks (AVPlayer/ExoPlayer or similar).
• Understanding of codecs, ABR, buffering, and A/V sync.

Responsibilities

• Design and evolve the C++ integration layer for TV playback with a Rust runtime.
• Integrate playback with platform-native media stacks and ensure performance.
• Improve test coverage, tooling, and observability.
• Collaborate across Playback platform and device teams.

Skills

C++

Low-level systems

Video playback

Tools

AVPlayer

ExoPlayer

Rust runtime

Job description

We design Spotify’s consumer experience—end to end, moment to moment, across every screen, platform, and partner integration. Our mission is to make listening feel effortless, personal, and joyful for billions of users around the world. That means turning complexity into clarity across hundreds of touchpoints—from our mobile and desktop apps to the smart speakers, TVs, cars, and integrations where Spotify shows up every day. If it touches a consumer, we shape it. We bring deep insight into human behavior, design, and technology to craft experiences that feel intuitive, expressive, and unmistakably Spotify.

At Spotify, we’re building the best way to experience audio and video — everywhere, every time. As listening and watching on TV continues to grow, we’re investing deeply in native, video-first playback experiences that are fast, reliable, and feel effortless.

The Native Playback team sits at the heart of Spotify’s TV strategy. We integrate Spotify’s playback experience with the native players and media frameworks available on each platform. Our work happens close to the system — where performance, reliability, and quality truly matter — and directly impacts how millions of people experience Spotify every day.

What You'll Do

• Design, build, and evolve the C++ integration layer that powers Spotify’s audio and video playback on TV devices running our new Rust runtime
• Integrate Spotify’s playback experience with platform-native media frameworks such as AVPlayer, ExoPlayer, or equivalent TV player stacks
• Own critical playback areas including buffering strategies, playback state handling, A/V synchronization, adaptive bitrate configuration, track selection, and rendering paths
• Debug complex performance and reliability issues across multiple layers — from application logic to OS-level frameworks and hardware acceleration
• Partner closely with Playback platform teams and device teams to ensure shared APIs and designs translate cleanly into real-world TV implementations
• Improve test coverage, tooling, and observability to detect regressions and speed up iteration cycles
• Contribute to thoughtful technical design discussions and raise the bar for playback quality through code reviews and knowledge sharing

Who You Are

• You have strong of experience building low-level systems in C++, ideally within video, media, or playback domains
• You have hands-on experience integrating native playback frameworks such as AVPlayer, ExoPlayer, vendor SDKs, or similar media stacks
• You have a deep understanding of video playback fundamentals including codecs, streaming formats, adaptive bitrate (ABR), buffering behavior, and A/V synchronization trade-offs
• You are comfortable working close to the OS and media framework layer and diagnosing issues that span multiple system boundaries
• You have experience contributing to the design and evolution of scalable technical systems across platforms
• You are confident debugging performance and reliability issues using logs, traces, profilers, and system diagnostics tools
• You collaborate effectively across teams and communicate technical trade-offs clearly
• You care deeply about delivering reliable, high-quality playback experiences for millions of users

Where You'll Be

• This role is based in London or Stockholm.
• We offer you the flexibility to work where you work best. While some in-person collaboration is expected, you’ll also have the option to work from home.