Official Google Play Music app debuts on Apple's iOS

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
After months of delays, Google's iTunes Match competitor and all-you-can-listen subscription music service officially made its way to the iOS App Store on Friday, providing access to both All Access subscriptions as well as standard Google Play Music features.

Google Play Music for iOS


The iOS version of Google Play Music appears to match up well with its Android counterpart, allowing users to store and stream their own music libraries or, with the $9.99-per-month All Access upgrade, tracks from major labels. Users can also create custom radio stations from any song or album, or listen to one of several predefined stations.

Unlike competitors Pandora and iTunes Radio, there is no limit to the number of tracks a user can skip when listening to radio stations. The inclusion of skip limits has long been a pain point for users of other services.

Google Play Music and the Spotify-like All Access service were announced by the search giant in May. A web client and mobile application for Google's Android mobile operating system accompanied the launch, with an iOS application promised to follow weeks later.

The iOS application never materialized, despite persistent rumors pointing to its imminent release. Google cited DRM concerns stemming from iOS's lack of support for Adobe's Flash as the reason for the delay, but Friday's release indicates the company has apparently overcome those issues.

Google Play Music is available today as a free download from the App Store, and new users are eligible to receive one free month of the All Access service.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 71
    No thanks. I don't support anything google, they are probably selling your listening habits and then you'll get gmail adds with music or something.
  • Reply 2 of 71
    froodfrood Posts: 771member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by alphafox View Post



    No thanks. I don't support anything google, they are probably selling your listening habits and then you'll get gmail adds with music or something.

     

    Not really how it works, but yes, 'being tracked' comes with almost all things Google (and Apple- whether you like it or not).

     

    Google has a vested interest in guarding your info, not selling it.

     

    Google doesn't place most ads that generate them revenue.  For example the 3993827382 ads you see surrounding these forums are placed by AI, not Google.  If you use Google services what changes is what ads get displayed to you.  You get the ads either way.  One way you get a bunch of random crap or stuff that is 'generally' targeted to the types of people that might visit AI.  If you use services like Google music there is a better chance that those ads won't be as 'random' and when the band that you listen to most on Google Music is coming to your town there's a better chance one of those ads will be for tickets to go see the show instead of for the random 'dish detergent' ad.

  • Reply 3 of 71
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    alphafox wrote: »
    No thanks. I don't support anything google, they are probably selling your listening habits and then you'll get gmail adds with music or something.

    While you're worrying about Google these are the others tracking your every move just here at AppleInsider according to Ghostery. And unlike most FUD about Google some of these guys may really be selling what information they find out about you.

    x+1 / Advertising
    Aggregate Knowledge /Beacons
    Atlas /Advertising
    BlueKai /Beacons
    Criteo /Advertising
    Connexity /Advertising
    DataXu /Advertising
    DoubleVerify /Analytics
    eBay Stats /Advertising
    Facebook Connect /Widgets
    InsightExpress /Analytics
    Integral Ad Science /Analytics
    MLN Advertising /Advertising
    MediaMath /Advertising
    Moat /Advertising
    Neustar AdAdvisor /Beacons
    OpenX /Advertising
    PubMatic /Advertising
    Quantcast /Advertising
    ScoreCard Research Beacon /Beacons
    TRUSTe Notice /Privacy
    TubeMogul /Analytics
    Turn /Advertising
    VigLink /Advertising
    VoiceFive /Beacons

    High-profile and closely monitored Google would be the least of my worries.
  • Reply 4 of 71

    I've been using Google Play for a while now, and it works very well.  When you install it on your Mac, it will even upload new music toGoogle Play, which has been downloaded in iTunes.  I plan on cancelling my iTunes match subscription  That's $24.99 more in my pocket and less in Apple's.

  • Reply 5 of 71
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Frood View Post

     

     

    Not really how it works, but yes, 'being tracked' comes with almost all things Google (and Apple- whether you like it or not).

     

    Google has a vested interest in guarding your info, not selling it.

     

    Google doesn't place most ads that generate them revenue.  For example the 3993827382 ads you see surrounding these forums are placed by AI, not Google.  If you use Google services what changes is what ads get displayed to you.  You get the ads either way.  One way you get a bunch of random crap or stuff that is 'generally' targeted to the types of people that might visit AI.  If you use services like Google music there is a better chance that those ads won't be as 'random' and when the band that you listen to most on Google Music is coming to your town there's a better chance one of those ads will be for tickets to go see the show instead of for the random 'dish detergent' ad.


    Yes, but it is disconcerting when you do a search for a product and instantly consecutive pages visited a full of very closely related ads. It feels invasive - like some buggy sales person following you around in a store.

  • Reply 6 of 71

    Google Play Music costs money, that's why you have unlimited skips, iRadio is free!

    I'm all against paying for radio because eventually they're going to make you pay for a subscription as well as throw ads at you. For those who remember, that's exactly what happened with cable tv. At the beginning you only needed to pay your monthly bill for ad free tv, then when people became dependent, stations started bringing in the commercials.

  • Reply 7 of 71
    Google tracks and follows me even when I stopped using them at all. What I didn't realize was you are persistently logged on to all all of their services if you don't go to their main page and log off.
  • Reply 8 of 71
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    genovelle wrote: »
    Google tracks and follows me even when I stopped using them at all. What I didn't realize was you are persistently logged on to all all of their services if you don't go to their main page and log off.
    paxman wrote: »
    Yes, but it is disconcerting when you do a search for a product and instantly consecutive pages visited a full of very closely related ads. It feels invasive - like some buggy sales person following you around in a store.

    How do you know it's Google following you, or that it's Google alone responsible for the ads you see? Did you bother to look at the huge number of trackers that aren't Google just here at AI? The 25 I see when logged on are listed in post 8 above. The names change on occasion too so your list might vary.

    I guess blaming Google for everything ad-related on the internet is like asking for a Coke. It's a catch-all generic that covers a whole lotta different companies products.
  • Reply 9 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zBernie View Post

     

    I've been using Google Play for a while now, and it works very well.  When you install it on your Mac, it will even upload new music toGoogle Play, which has been downloaded in iTunes.  I plan on cancelling my iTunes match subscription  That's $24.99 more in my pocket and less in Apple's.


     

    I use both. I actually do like the fact that Google will allow you to store a whole lot of music online for "free" (of course I know my data is being shared, but in this rare case I think it's a fair tradeoff).

  • Reply 10 of 71
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    I use both. I actually do like the fact that Google will allow you to store a whole lot of music online for "free" (of course I know my data is being shared, but in this rare case I think it's a fair tradeoff).

    My favorite All-Access station is one Google created automatically from the music I gave thumbs-up. Conveniently called "Thumbs Up". :lol:

    "All favorites all the time"
  • Reply 11 of 71

    I love the iPhone, ??c bi?t là ch?c n?ng camera quan sát hình anh s?c nét. hãng apple ngày càng nâng c?p l?p ??t camera cho hình ?nh ch?t l??ng cao.

  • Reply 12 of 71
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post







    How do you know it's Google following you, or that it's Google alone responsible for the ads you see? Did you bother to look at the huge number of trackers that aren't Google just here at AI? The 25 I see when logged on are listed in post 8 above. The names change on occasion too so your list might vary.



    I guess blaming Google for everything ad-related on the internet is like asking for a Coke. It's a catch-all generic that covers a whole lotta different companies products.

    My comment was general - not really about Google, per se. I am not against advertising - not even 'targeted' advertising, but I dislike the concept of tracking and profiling as a commodity.

  • Reply 13 of 71
    tbelltbell Posts: 3,146member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post







    How do you know it's Google following you, or that it's Google alone responsible for the ads you see? Did you bother to look at the huge number of trackers that aren't Google just here at AI? The 25 I see when logged on are listed in post 8 above. The names change on occasion too so your list might vary.



    I guess blaming Google for everything ad-related on the internet is like asking for a Coke. It's a catch-all generic that covers a whole lotta different companies products.

     

     

    I know it is Google because the ads I see are typically tied to my gmail account. 

  • Reply 14 of 71
    tbelltbell Posts: 3,146member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by zBernie View Post

     

    I've been using Google Play for a while now, and it works very well.  When you install it on your Mac, it will even upload new music toGoogle Play, which has been downloaded in iTunes.  I plan on cancelling my iTunes match subscription  That's $24.99 more in my pocket and less in Apple's.


     

     

    Unless you are paying Google 9.99 a month, I fail to see how its service compares to the one Apple offers at $24.99 a year.

  • Reply 15 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by paxman View Post

     

    My comment was general - not really about Google, per se. I am not against advertising - not even 'targeted' advertising, but I dislike the concept of tracking and profiling as a commodity.


     

    So... You're against all forms of demographic data gathering? All forms of targeted advertising? All polls and surveys?

  • Reply 16 of 71
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    tbell wrote: »

    I know it is Google because the ads I see are typically tied to my gmail account. 

    Ah Gotcha. There's no trackers at any other sites you visit or any other services you use. BTW I just got a tracking beacon notice when I visited Apple.com of all places. What kind of information might that beacon be collecting? According to the provider:

    -The URLs of the web pages you visit and the time spent on them
    -The URL of the page that showed the link you clicked on that brought you to that company's website
    -The searches you have performed, including searches that led you to that company's website
    -Information about your browser and device, such as device type, operating system, connection speed, and display settings
    -Your IP address
    -Information you may provide on the company's website, including information on registration forms
    -Whether you clicked on an ad
    -Items you've either purchased or placed within the shopping cart
    -Social network profile information, including photos, fan and like status, user IDs, age, and gender

    Some companies using it may forward information that allows them to identify you personally. Some companies may also buy additional information about you and then add that additional information to the information collected. This additional information may include things like email addresses, account information, or Facebook profile information, including photos and usernames.

    Beacons are a lot more effective for gathering user data and identifying visitors than cookies.
  • Reply 17 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Gatorguy View Post





    BTW I just got a tracking beacon notice when I visited Apple.com of all places.

     

    How were you notified? Is there a browser plug-in for this?

  • Reply 18 of 71
    koopkoop Posts: 337member

    I really don't care that Google uses me ordering a pizza every friday as a way to target advertising. There's nothing I do on the internet that is private. It's commerce and basic communication...and gaming. Lots of gaming. Want to be private? Log off, shut off the computer and then throw it out the window. 

     

    It's on you if you keep very personal information in the cloud, or even stored locally on a computer. No thanks. 

  • Reply 19 of 71
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    How were you notified? Is there a browser plug-in for this?

    I use Ghostery as a plug-in with Chrome. If you're at all curious how many different trackers I'm blocking there's 832 that would like to push ads to me, 348 highly invasive beacons that would love collecting a lot of user data, and 242 widgets blocked. How many of the 1000+ trackers Ghostery is aware of belong to Google? Relatively few.
  • Reply 20 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by alphafox View Post



    No thanks. I don't support anything google, they are probably selling your listening habits and then you'll get gmail adds with music or something.

     

    Same here.  Thanks but no thanks.  

    Only things I still use once in a while are Google Search and YouTube.

    Hopefully I can dump them soon.

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