diff --git a/piker/brokers/data.py b/piker/brokers/data.py
index b6e5ab6a..b9431654 100644
--- a/piker/brokers/data.py
+++ b/piker/brokers/data.py
@@ -108,6 +108,9 @@ async def stream_quotes(
             await trio.sleep(delay)
 
 
+# TODO: at this point probably just just make this a class and
+# a lot of these functions should be methods. It will definitely
+# make stateful UI apps easier to implement
 class DataFeed(typing.NamedTuple):
     """A per broker "data feed" container.
 
@@ -118,7 +121,7 @@ class DataFeed(typing.NamedTuple):
     client: object
     exit_stack: contextlib.AsyncExitStack
     quoter_keys: List[str] = ['stock', 'option']
-    tasks: Dict[str, trio._core._run.Task] = dict.fromkeys(
+    tasks: Dict[str, trio.Event] = dict.fromkeys(
         quoter_keys, False)
     quoters: Dict[str, typing.Coroutine] = {}
     subscriptions: Dict[str, Dict[str, set]] = {'option': {}, 'stock': {}}
@@ -234,13 +237,19 @@ async def smoke_quote(get_quotes, tickers, broker):
     ###########################################
 
 
-async def modify_quote_stream(broker, feed_type, symbols, chan=None, cid=None):
+def modify_quote_stream(broker, feed_type, symbols, chan, cid):
     """Absolute symbol subscription list for each quote stream.
 
     Effectively a symbol subscription api.
     """
     log.info(f"{chan} changed symbol subscription to {symbols}")
-    feed = await get_cached_feed(broker)
+    ss = tractor.current_actor().statespace
+    feed = ss['feeds'].get(broker)
+    if feed is None:
+        raise RuntimeError(
+            "`get_cached_feed()` must be called before modifying its stream"
+        )
+
     symbols2chans = feed.subscriptions[feed_type]
     # update map from each symbol to requesting client's chan
     for ticker in symbols:
@@ -299,6 +308,7 @@ async def start_quote_stream(
     diff_cached: bool = True,
     chan: tractor.Channel = None,
     cid: str = None,
+    rate: int = 3,
 ) -> None:
     """Handle per-broker quote stream subscriptions using a "lazy" pub-sub
     pattern.
@@ -311,7 +321,6 @@ async def start_quote_stream(
     # set log level after fork
     get_console_log(actor.loglevel)
     # pull global vars from local actor
-    ss = actor.statespace
     symbols = list(symbols)
     log.info(
         f"{chan.uid} subscribed to {broker} for symbols {symbols}")
@@ -337,38 +346,65 @@ async def start_quote_stream(
             'option',
             await feed.mod.option_quoter(feed.client, symbols)
         )
-
-    # update map from each symbol to requesting client's chan
-    await modify_quote_stream(broker, feed_type, symbols, chan, cid)
-
     try:
-        if not feed.tasks.get(feed_type):
-            # no data feeder task yet; so start one
-            respawn = True
+        # update map from each symbol to requesting client's chan
+        modify_quote_stream(broker, feed_type, symbols, chan, cid)
+
+        # event indicating that task was started and then killed
+        task_is_dead = feed.tasks.get(feed_type)
+        if task_is_dead is False:
+            task_is_dead = trio.Event()
+            task_is_dead.set()
+            feed.tasks[feed_type] = task_is_dead
+
+        if not task_is_dead.is_set():
+            # block and let existing feed task deliver
+            # stream data until it is cancelled in which case
+            # we'll take over and spawn it again
+            await task_is_dead.wait()
+            # client channel was likely disconnected
+            # but we still want to keep the broker task
+            # alive if there are other consumers (including
+            # ourselves)
+            if any(symbols2chans.values()):
+                log.warn(
+                    f"Data feed task for {feed.mod.name} was cancelled but"
+                    f" there are still active clients, respawning")
+
+        # no data feeder task yet; so start one
+        respawn = True
+        while respawn:
+            respawn = False
             log.info(f"Spawning data feed task for {feed.mod.name}")
-            while respawn:
-                respawn = False
-                try:
-                    async with trio.open_nursery() as nursery:
-                        nursery.start_soon(
-                            partial(
-                                fan_out_to_chans, feed, get_quotes,
-                                symbols2chans,
-                                diff_cached=diff_cached,
-                                cid=cid
-                            )
+            try:
+                async with trio.open_nursery() as nursery:
+                    nursery.start_soon(
+                        partial(
+                            fan_out_to_chans, feed, get_quotes,
+                            symbols2chans,
+                            diff_cached=diff_cached,
+                            cid=cid,
+                            rate=rate,
                         )
-                        feed.tasks[feed_type] = True
-                except trio.BrokenResourceError:
-                    log.exception("Respawning failed data feed task")
-                    respawn = True
-            # unblocks when no more symbols subscriptions exist and the
-            # quote streamer task terminates (usually because another call
-            # was made to `modify_quoter` to unsubscribe from streaming
-            # symbols)
+                    )
+                    # it's alive!
+                    task_is_dead.clear()
+
+            except trio.BrokenResourceError:
+                log.exception("Respawning failed data feed task")
+                respawn = True
+
+        # unblocks when no more symbols subscriptions exist and the
+        # quote streamer task terminates (usually because another call
+        # was made to `modify_quoter` to unsubscribe from streaming
+        # symbols)
     finally:
         log.info(f"Terminated {feed_type} quoter task for {feed.mod.name}")
-        feed.tasks.pop(feed_type)
+        task_is_dead.set()
+
+        # if we're cancelled externally unsubscribe our quote feed
+        modify_quote_stream(broker, feed_type, [], chan, cid)
+
         # if there are truly no more subscriptions with this broker
         # drop from broker subs dict
         if not any(symbols2chans.values()):