Google may shut down Google Play Music soon, replace it with YouTube Remix

Google Play Music may soon be shut down. Alphabet-owned Google is looking to shut down its music streaming service Google Play Music and replace it with YouTube Remix, according to a report. The report further says Play Music users may also be forced onto Remix by the end of 2018.

To recall, Bloomberg had reported in December 2017 that YouTube may soon launch a paid music subscription service known as YouTube Remix in order to compete with rivals Apple Music and Spotify.

Future reports also suggested that the US-based video streaming website had struck deals with prominent industry labels and come to an agreement on the terms that would allow YouTube to launch this new music subscription service. The terms of agreement finally put the labels at ease who had for a long time accused YouTube of violating copyrights.

In fact, Lyor Cohen, YouTube’s global head of music, in March this year said that the new service (YouTube Remix) will bring not only “the best of Google Play Music’s context server” but also YouTube’s “breadth and depth of catalogue”, without giving any further clarity on the subject.

Apart from the company generating better revenues by moving on from being ad-driven to subscription-driven, Cohen added that the new service will benefit users by way of improved recommendations. “Did you know that 80 per cent of all of watch time on YouTube is recommended by a recommendation engine?” Cohen asked.

"We've previously announced the combination of YouTube Music and Google Play product teams — music is very important to Google, so it's critical that we have one offering that meets the needs of consumers and artists. Nothing will change for users today and we'll provide plenty of notice before any changes are made," a YouTube spokesperson stated to Droid-Life.