Just as it was reported that Amazon was going to release a free music streaming tier for Echo owners — now out, it's worth noting — Google just made its YouTube Music service available to all Google Home device owners.
That means Home smart speakers can now play music from YouTube Music's free ad-supported tier. Previously, to listen to YouTube music on those devices, users had to have been subscribed to YouTube Music Premium, which costs $9.99 a month.
Free YouTube Music Now On Google Home
There's no need for that anymore as YouTube Music comes to Google Home, with ads. All Google Home smart speakers are supported, including the regular Home, the Max, and the Mini. Other Google Assistant smart speakers are also included. It's available in 16 countries at the moment.
"With YouTube Music and Google Home, you can ask Google Home to play the right music for any moment or mood, and YouTube Music will play the perfect station, customized to your tastes based upon your request," reads an official announcement posted on YouTube's blog.
As with any free tiers, there are caveats included. For starters, users can't pick specific songs from the smart speaker. Instead, it will load up playlists. Requesting for specific songs doesn't seem to be working well at the moment, as per The Verge, which asked Google Assistant to Play a song but played a different one instead — after playing an ad for YouTube Music Premium first, it should be noted.
YouTube Music Premium
To give it ago, open the Google Home companion app, tap Settings, choose Music, and from there users will be able to select YouTube Music as the default music streaming service. They can also bite the bullet and subscribe to YouTube Music Premium, which unlocks a number of features, including the ability to play music in the background while using other apps, downloading apps for offline play, an ad-free listening experience, and more. There's a free 30-day trial up for grabs if anyone's interested.
YouTube Music isn't available on smart speaker powered by Alexa, free or premium. The two companies have been fiercely competitive in terms of gatekeeping proprietary services. YouTube once pulled its app from Echo Show devices claiming it violated some of its rules and policies.
Thoughts on YouTube Music's free tier finally coming to Google Home smart speakers? As always, feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
