View of the Google Play store
Google has revealed its latest digital innovation via the launch of the Google Play online store, which looks set to give Apple iTunes and Amazon a run for their money in the digital content stakes.
Google revealed Google Play yesterday and said it would be integrating Android Market, Google Music and the Google eBookstore into the online platform.
Writing in the Google blog, Jamie Rosenberg, the internet giant’s director of digital content, posted how Google Play would eliminate the hassle of moving files between computers and synching across devices.
He said Google Play would be a “digital entertainment destination where you can find, enjoy and share your favourite music, movies, books and apps on the web and on your Android phone or tablet”.
As well as this, Google Play is cloud-based so people can store all of their digital content – be it books, music, films or apps – online.
Users can store up to 20,000 songs for free via the store, as well as download more than 450,000 Android apps and games. The store will also give users the option to browse e-books and rent movies, including new releases and high-definition titles.
People’s videos, books, music apps, Android Market, Google Music and the Google eBookstore will be upgraded to Google Play Movies, Google Play Books and Google Play Music apps, said Rosenberg.
In the US, music, movies, books and Android apps will be available in Google Play, said Google. In Canada and the UK, Google Play will offer movies, books and Android apps, while in Australia it will offer books and apps. Users in Japan will be able to choose from movies and apps.
“Everywhere else, Google Play will be the new home for Android apps. Our long-term goal is to roll out as many different types of content as possible to people around the world, and we’ll keep adding new content to keep it fresh,” added Rosenberg.
And with South by Southwest (SXSW) taking place in Austin, Texas, this week, Google will have a Google Village so people can experience Google Play in action.
Incidentally, our Tech Start-up of the Week, the Dublin-based 45Sound.com, is also heading to SXSW this week. The new venture, which is aiming to revolutionise how we listen to concerts and gigs from our favourite bands and artists online, made it to the final eight companies competing in the finals of the Music Accelerator section at SXSW.
