Got Google Play Music but don't use it too much? You're not alone, but if you're a fan of podcasts, Google's upcoming update to the app may just bring you back to it.
Last October, Google shared that it was going to add podcast playback on the Google Play Music app. Back then, that's all that Google said. There was no word on an actual release date.
Thanks to Twitter, we've finally got that release date. It's going to happen this month.
Popular podcaster and ex-Grantland extraordinaire Bill Simmons tweeted to his 4.79 million Twitter followers that his "Bill Simmons Podcast" would be "available on Google Play when GP launches its podcast platform later this month." And that's all he wrote.
Apparently, Simmons ultimately realized that he may have said too much and went on to delete his tweet. Thankfully, the Internet never forgets. One of his millions of followers took a screenshot of the tweet and here we are writing about it.
We can't blame The Sports Guy for jumping the gun, however. He does have a large following after years of working with ESPN. He boasts about 27 million listens since he launched his own podcast just four months ago. That being said, we certainly expect Simmons to be in the know, and thanks to him, now we all know, too.
Since he left ESPN, Simmons now works with HBO, which was one of the first companies listed to be partnering up with Google to create content for its upcoming podcast platform. Other partners include 5x5, Nerdist and StartTalk Radio.
Along with providing an alternative platform for listening to podcasts, Google Play Music will also offer contextual recommendation to users by suggesting other podcasts they could also listen to based on their interests. This isn't anything new; we see this in the Google Play Store with games and other apps.
Google's entry into the podcast space certainly will change up the playing field. Apps like Pocket Casts for Android may find users switching over to Google Play Music. That's yet to be seen though until Google finally does make that feature available to the public.
