Google will today introduce music to its Google Play mobile and cloud store in Ireland and other European countries, as well as Australia and New Zealand. The new service makes it possible to access millions of music tracks on any cloud-connected device, as well as Android tablets and smartphones.
The Music store will go live in Ireland today, as well as in Belgium, Austria, Portugal and The Netherlands.
As well as being able to stream and download songs from the Google Play Music library, music lovers will be able to add up to 20,000 songs from their existing music collection to Google Play and listen to the songs on any computer or Android smartphone or tablet, even when offline.
Music is one component of a variety of content types that Google wants to sell through its Play mobile store. As well as apps, Google is already selling movies, TV shows and books via its Play stores in the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain and Russia.
‘Music should be mobile’
Google’s head of music partnerships Sami Valkonen told Siliconrepublic.com that Android smartphone users will from today notice an extra tab in their Google Play store for music.
Computer and Android users can download a music manager app that includes an Instant Mix feature that results in Google Play auto-generating a playlist of 25 songs that match the mood and style of a particular song.
Google is also launching Artist Hub, a platform for independent artists to sell their music directly to fans. New artists or bands can create a profile, upload their music files, suggest a retail price and sell their music on Google Play.
Valkonen explained that Google Play hosts music from giant music labels, as well as indie labels, and most tracks range in price between €0.99 and €1.29.
Google Play Music was launched originally in the US and Google started its international expansion in November last year.
“Google Play is a digital entertainment destination but one that is based entirely on the concept of the cloud.
“Instead of buying and downloading tracks, with Google Play you can buy music and store it in the cloud and it will always be available from an internet-connected device and on your Android device whether offline or online.”
Valkonen said that at its heart Google Play Music is a mobile experience. “We believe music should be mobile and with our service it puts music in the cloud and in turn we put the cloud in the palm of your hand and take your music with you on any Android device or any device you choose.”
He said that social sharing features include the ability to allow friends on Google+ to listen to a track you’ve bought in its entirety.
“We’re really excited about the breadth of our catalogue where we have all of the major labels, as well as hundreds of independent labels.
“Music is social and our music store is all about community building and getting people engaged in sharing experiences with music and we’re always looking at new ways of making this happen.”
