YouTube Music will now be integrated into Android devices, bye bye Google Play Music

An incomplete transition to YouTube Music

While the YouTube Music app should have been downloaded from the Google Play Store until now, this will soon be gone. It will now be pre-installed directly on Android. That’s why the Mountain View giant is pushing users to YouTube Music as the Play Music app is getting old. By contrast, the YouTube Music platform and mobile apps continue to grow. On the other hand, Google still hasn’t moved downloads for Google Play Music subscribers. Therefore, many users may not be ready to switch to YouTube Music just yet.

There is no doubt that Google is trying to raise the bar in every way against its rivals like Deezer, Spotify or Apple Music. Last May, YouTube Music and Google Play Music had only 15 million subscribers, versus 100 million on the Spotify side and 60 million on the Apple side. It remains to be seen whether this strategy will work or if Google like some of its competitors (like Microsoft and Groove Music) will one day have to throw in the towel. But given the popularity of YouTube, you probably don’t need to worry.

Source : Google Blog