Google Play Music to completely shut down by the end of the year

The streaming service is merging with YouTube Music

Google has shared a timeline for the phased shutdown of its Google Play Music streaming service, which will cease to exist before the start of 2021.

The tech company stated that users will need to move their libraries over to YouTube Music before the service shuts down for good in December, when all content will be deleted and no longer transferable.

Google Play Music’s merger with YouTube Music has been in the pipeline for a few years now, however, Google are now making big moves to ensure YouTube’s service can act as a full replacement before the year is out.

For users in New Zealand and South Africa, access will be revoked in September; for users in all other regions, October will be the cut off.

Also starting later this month, Google will no longer accept purchases for music within its Play Store.

Announcing the news in a blog post, the YouTube Team stated: “Over the last few years, we’ve worked to build a fantastic fan experience on YouTube Music, merging the very best of Google Play Music with the very best of YouTube. For users who decide not to transfer their Google Play Music account to YouTube music, we will be sure to cancel your subscription at the end of your billing cycle so you aren’t paying for a subscription.”

“We can’t wait for you to start exploring YouTube Music features and discovering new music favourites along the way.”

Find out more about the merger here.

You might like