Photo: Google
2020 brought us several notable Android Auto improvements but also a series of changes users out there didn’t necessarily receive with much enthusiasm.
One of them is the demise of Google Play Music, a service that was unexpectedly popular not only on Android but also on Android Auto.
The reason for Google’s decision to give up on Play Music was as simple as it could be: the company just wanted to focus entirely on YouTube Music, so killing off the old service was what the search giant considered to be the best option.
The transition from Google Play Music to YouTube Music didn’t necessarily go as planned, though, and it’s all because not everybody wanted to make the switch.
This was the result of YouTube Music itself not being entirely prepared for a fully-featured experience behind the wheel. Shortly after Google announced its decision to retire Google Play Music, those who tried YouTube Music discovered they had to pay even for listening to their own libraries or the songs they purchased from the service that was getting the ax.
Google eventually resolved this by adding a free option to YouTube Music, but despite this update, the new platform still lacked several features that could have turned it into the best choice behind the wheel.
At this point, Google Play Music is already dead, and everybody is urged to move their libraries to YouTube Music as soon as possible. Google says it would retire the migration tools on December 31, but as it turns out, they still work, so this is pretty much the last chance you get to save your music.
If you don’t do this, the entire library would eventually be removed, as the future is all about YouTube Music now, both on the phone and in the car.
It remains to be seen, however, if YouTube Music improves its experience on Android Auto, but for the time being, it’s pretty clear the likes of Spotify and others are the ones to benefit from all this struggle.
The reason for Google’s decision to give up on Play Music was as simple as it could be: the company just wanted to focus entirely on YouTube Music, so killing off the old service was what the search giant considered to be the best option.
The transition from Google Play Music to YouTube Music didn’t necessarily go as planned, though, and it’s all because not everybody wanted to make the switch.
This was the result of YouTube Music itself not being entirely prepared for a fully-featured experience behind the wheel. Shortly after Google announced its decision to retire Google Play Music, those who tried YouTube Music discovered they had to pay even for listening to their own libraries or the songs they purchased from the service that was getting the ax.
Google eventually resolved this by adding a free option to YouTube Music, but despite this update, the new platform still lacked several features that could have turned it into the best choice behind the wheel.
At this point, Google Play Music is already dead, and everybody is urged to move their libraries to YouTube Music as soon as possible. Google says it would retire the migration tools on December 31, but as it turns out, they still work, so this is pretty much the last chance you get to save your music.
If you don’t do this, the entire library would eventually be removed, as the future is all about YouTube Music now, both on the phone and in the car.
It remains to be seen, however, if YouTube Music improves its experience on Android Auto, but for the time being, it’s pretty clear the likes of Spotify and others are the ones to benefit from all this struggle.
Google News