Photo: Google
Google is killing off Google Play Music, and the company is replacing this service with YouTube Music, both on the phone and in the car.
But as far as Android Auto users are concerned, the experience with YouTube Music has been awful, to say the least.
A several months old thread on Google’s forums is the home of tens of complaints posted by former Play Music users who were forced to make the switch to YouTube Music only to discover they can’t access their music on Android Auto.
And it’s because YouTube Music requires a subscription to be able to play content on Android Auto, even when users just want to play their own music which was previously purchased from Google Play Music.
The struggle to access their own libraries has made many consider a potential switch to Apple, and several turned to Google’s forums to blast the search giant for pushing them to another platform.
“This is such a negative experience. I'm already reading about iPhone 12 rumors because I'm so annoyed,” one user says. “Sometimes it plays the music. Other times it says I need a YouTube Premium subscription. Other times, it cannot find the music at all. What a mess. It was working well about 6 months ago... Enough to get me to get an Apple,” someone else adds.
Others just claim that they want to give up on Google’s music service and make the switch to the likes of Spotify simply because they’re forced to pay for the same content twice.
“I'm contemplating switching to Spotify as I also cannot get YouTube Music to work through AA, despite having a huge purchased music library,” a Google user explains. “I guess I'll have to give Spotify a try, thanks Google,” another former Google Play Music customer adds.
The good news for all these users is that Google has already acknowledged the struggles with YouTube Music, and the company promised to improve the experience going forward. No specifics have been offered on what this improved experience is supposed to bring, but we guess that making it easier to listen to music on Android Auto is a priority for the Mountain View-based search giant.
A several months old thread on Google’s forums is the home of tens of complaints posted by former Play Music users who were forced to make the switch to YouTube Music only to discover they can’t access their music on Android Auto.
And it’s because YouTube Music requires a subscription to be able to play content on Android Auto, even when users just want to play their own music which was previously purchased from Google Play Music.
The struggle to access their own libraries has made many consider a potential switch to Apple, and several turned to Google’s forums to blast the search giant for pushing them to another platform.
“This is such a negative experience. I'm already reading about iPhone 12 rumors because I'm so annoyed,” one user says. “Sometimes it plays the music. Other times it says I need a YouTube Premium subscription. Other times, it cannot find the music at all. What a mess. It was working well about 6 months ago... Enough to get me to get an Apple,” someone else adds.
Others just claim that they want to give up on Google’s music service and make the switch to the likes of Spotify simply because they’re forced to pay for the same content twice.
“I'm contemplating switching to Spotify as I also cannot get YouTube Music to work through AA, despite having a huge purchased music library,” a Google user explains. “I guess I'll have to give Spotify a try, thanks Google,” another former Google Play Music customer adds.
The good news for all these users is that Google has already acknowledged the struggles with YouTube Music, and the company promised to improve the experience going forward. No specifics have been offered on what this improved experience is supposed to bring, but we guess that making it easier to listen to music on Android Auto is a priority for the Mountain View-based search giant.
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