Alexa Skill - German Umlauts Not Recognized (Die Ärzte example)

Plex Media Server
1

Hi everyone,

I’m having issues with the Plex Alexa skill recognizing German artist names with umlauts (ä, ö, ü).

The Problem:

  • Artist: “Die Ärzte” (a famous German band)

  • Voice command: “Alexa, ask Plex to play Die Ärzte”

  • Result: Alexa/Plex cannot find the artist

What I’ve tested:

  • :cross_mark: Echo devices (Alexa voice): Not found

  • :cross_mark: Alexa app on mobile: Not found

  • :white_check_mark: Plex desktop app: Search works perfectly

The artist is properly tagged in my library with correct ID3 metadata. The issue seems specific to how the Alexa skill handles German umlauts during voice recognition or search queries.

My Setup:

  • Plex Media Server in Docker (Synology NAS)

  • Music library with correct metadata

  • Alexa skill properly linked

Question: Is there a workaround for this? I know the competing product “My Media for Alexa” has a correction/alias function for exactly these cases. Does Plex offer something similar? Can I add alternative artist names or phonetic spellings that Alexa can recognize?

Has anyone else experienced this with German (or other non-English) characters? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Plex Server has Version 1.42.2.10156

Thanks in advance!

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