A Comparative Study of Micro-interactions in Music Streaming Apps: Spotify vs. NetEase Music
Luo, Jenny (2025)
2025
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025053018567
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025053018567
Tiivistelmä
This research, conducted between February and May 2025, took Spotify and NetEase Music——two dominant music streaming platforms representing respectively the global market and China's domestic market——as the research objects, exploring their differences in micro-interaction design, and how these differences reflect the platforms’ cultural adaptability to user expectations across distinct cultural contexts.
The study is structured based on Dan Saffer’s micro-interaction theory, selecting eight representative tasks, and analyzing the interfaces through four dimensions: Trigger, Rules, Feedback, and Loops & Modes. User experience feedback was then collected through task-based user testing and semi-structured interviews. Finally, the findings were interpreted through Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory and Hall’s high- and low-context communication theory, in order to explain and contrast the cultural adaptation factors behind the design differences.
The results show that the two apps exhibit distinct differences in information delivery, feedback mechanism, and social interaction. These differences reflect their adaptation strategies to their respective target cultures:
Spotify targets users from low-context, individualistic cultures, represented by Western. Its micro-interaction design prioritizes clarity of information, simplicity feedback, and a small-scale in social interaction, emphasizing a smooth experience with minimal intervention, aligning with cultural preferences for efficiency, directness, and individual pacing.
In contrast, NetEase Music serves users from high-context, collectivism Eastern cultures. Its design places greater emphasis on visual appeal, emotional engagement, and community interaction. Its interface provides abundant guidance, subtle hints, and layered feedback, allowing users to naturally integrate into the relational network and emotional context constructed by the platform.
This difference not only shows the products’ awareness and response to cultural characteristics but also reveals the critical role of micro interactions as a vehicle for cultural adaptation.
This study demonstrates that micro-interaction is not only a means to enhance user experience, but also a reflection of cultural values. By analyzing how micro-interaction adapts to users’ behavioral patterns across different cultural contexts, this thesis offers practical strategies for cross-cultural digital product design.
The study is structured based on Dan Saffer’s micro-interaction theory, selecting eight representative tasks, and analyzing the interfaces through four dimensions: Trigger, Rules, Feedback, and Loops & Modes. User experience feedback was then collected through task-based user testing and semi-structured interviews. Finally, the findings were interpreted through Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory and Hall’s high- and low-context communication theory, in order to explain and contrast the cultural adaptation factors behind the design differences.
The results show that the two apps exhibit distinct differences in information delivery, feedback mechanism, and social interaction. These differences reflect their adaptation strategies to their respective target cultures:
Spotify targets users from low-context, individualistic cultures, represented by Western. Its micro-interaction design prioritizes clarity of information, simplicity feedback, and a small-scale in social interaction, emphasizing a smooth experience with minimal intervention, aligning with cultural preferences for efficiency, directness, and individual pacing.
In contrast, NetEase Music serves users from high-context, collectivism Eastern cultures. Its design places greater emphasis on visual appeal, emotional engagement, and community interaction. Its interface provides abundant guidance, subtle hints, and layered feedback, allowing users to naturally integrate into the relational network and emotional context constructed by the platform.
This difference not only shows the products’ awareness and response to cultural characteristics but also reveals the critical role of micro interactions as a vehicle for cultural adaptation.
This study demonstrates that micro-interaction is not only a means to enhance user experience, but also a reflection of cultural values. By analyzing how micro-interaction adapts to users’ behavioral patterns across different cultural contexts, this thesis offers practical strategies for cross-cultural digital product design.