Now Playing Integration

MediaPlayer framework patterns for Lock Screen and Control Center integration. Covers MPNowPlayingInfoCenter (manual) and MPNowPlayingSession (iOS 16+ automatic), plus CarPlay and MusicKit integration.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you're:

• Now Playing info doesn't appear on Lock Screen or Control Center
• Play/pause/skip buttons are grayed out or don't respond
• Album artwork is missing, wrong, or flickers between images
• Control Center shows "Playing" when paused (or vice versa)
• Another app "steals" Now Playing status from your app
• Implementing Now Playing for the first time
• Integrating CarPlay Now Playing support

Core insight: Now Playing eligibility requires THREE things: AVAudioSession activation, remote command handlers, and metadata publishing. Missing ANY silently breaks the entire system.

Example Prompts

Questions you can ask Claude that will draw from this skill:

• "Now Playing info shows briefly when playback starts, then disappears when I lock the screen."
• "Play/pause buttons in Control Center are grayed out or don't respond to taps."
• "Album artwork never appears, or shows wrong artwork, or flickers between images."
• "Control Center shows 'Playing' when my app is actually paused. How do I sync them?"
• "Apple Music takes over and my app loses Now Playing control."
• "How do I add Now Playing support to my CarPlay audio app?"

What's Covered

AVAudioSession Configuration (Pattern 1)

• Non-mixable .playback category for eligibility
• Background mode "audio" in Info.plist
• Activation timing before playback
• Session deactivation with notify option

Remote Command Registration (Pattern 2)

• Command targets AND isEnabled = true
• Skip intervals with preferredIntervals
• Handler return values
• Strong references to targets

Artwork (Pattern 3)

• MPMediaItemArtwork with size handler
• Single source of truth to prevent flickering
• Task cancellation on track change
• Minimum 600x600 pixel images

Playback State Sync (Pattern 4)

• playbackRate (not playbackState) on iOS
• When to update: play, pause, seek, track change
• NOT on timer (causes jitter)
• Preserve dictionary values on partial updates

MPNowPlayingSession (Pattern 5)

• iOS 16+ automatic publishing
• session.remoteCommandCenter not shared
• becomeActiveIfPossible() for eligibility
• Multiple sessions for PiP

CarPlay (Pattern 6)

• Same MPNowPlayingInfoCenter as iOS
• com.apple.developer.carplay-audio entitlement
• Custom buttons via CPNowPlayingTemplate
• Configuration at scene connection

MusicKit (Pattern 7)

• ApplicationMusicPlayer auto-publishes
• Don't manually set nowPlayingInfo
• Hybrid apps switching between players

Key Pattern

The Eligibility Requirements

// ✅ All three required for Now Playing to appear:

// 1. Non-mixable audio session
try AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setCategory(.playback, options: [])
try AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setActive(true)

// 2. At least one command handler
let commandCenter = MPRemoteCommandCenter.shared()
commandCenter.playCommand.addTarget { _ in .success }
commandCenter.playCommand.isEnabled = true

// 3. Metadata published
MPNowPlayingInfoCenter.default().nowPlayingInfo = [
    MPMediaItemPropertyTitle: "Track Name",
    MPNowPlayingInfoPropertyPlaybackRate: 1.0  // iOS uses rate, not playbackState
]

Decision Tree

Documentation Scope

This page documents the axiom-now-playing skill—MediaPlayer framework patterns Claude uses when you're implementing or debugging Lock Screen and Control Center integration for audio/video apps.

For AVAudioSession details: See avfoundation-ref for audio session configuration beyond Now Playing.

For memory issues with handlers: See memory-debugging for retain cycle diagnosis in command closures.

Related

• avfoundation-ref — AVAudioSession configuration, spatial audio, ASAF/APAC
• memory-debugging — Retain cycle diagnosis in closure-based command handlers
• swift-concurrency — @MainActor patterns for async artwork loading

Resources

WWDC: 2019-501, 2022-110338

Docs: /mediaplayer/mpnowplayinginfocenter, /mediaplayer/mpnowplayingsession, /mediaplayer/mpremotecommandcenter