SPOTIFY GLITCH PUTS "SIGN" ON PAUSE (UPDATE)

UPDATE: The problem with "Sign of the Times" in the search function on Spotify was eventually resolved, but caused the song not to show up in search for much of the first day. How much will it affect Harry's first week? Stay tuned.

Apparently a glitch caused “Sign of the Times,” Harry Styles’ blockbuster new single, to vanish sporadically from Spotify this morning and become nearly impossible, at times, to find. The track appeared at the top of the New Music Friday playlist for a time and then disappeared. Sources close to the situation say the problem is being fixed as expeditiously as possible—and the Swedish streamery is offering a bevy of ways to make up for it.

Still, observers wonder how this unfortunate technical issue—said to be a function of how new music is absorbed into Spotify’s system--will affect the Columbia megastar’s first-week streams.

Not that this will prevent “Sign” from dominating the marketplace for the near future. The song is outselling its nearest competitor on iTunes, for example, by 10-1.