Google Play Music app begins inevitable global shutdown of service

Google Play Music has finally begun its long, slow death, with many users reporting that the app has become inaccessible. Although Google did say that the service would be closed by the end of the year, it appears that an earlier shutdown is already in progress.

Google has been trying to push users onto its successor service, YouTube Music, but has been repeatedly been scuppered by its own inaction on creating feature parity. This has now largely been redressed with options to upload your own music and migrate existing purchases, but there are still occasional minor inequities even today.

Earlier this month, we saw the closure of the Music section of the Google Play Store, effectively ending the sale of mp3s by the company in favor of an all-streaming model. Now it seems that the warnings of imminent closure have now been replaced by two options – transfer to YouTube Music (which migrates your data) or Manage Data, which gives you the opportunity to download your library and delete your settings. Doing so will trigger Google Play Music to be removed from your system for the last time.

If you’re in this boat, there are a few things to remember:`

1.  You can download all your purchases from Google Takeout until the end of the year if you want to keep a hard copy or migrate elsewhere
2. From next year, you’ll lose everything you haven’t saved
3. If you have transferred to YouTube Music and made subsequent purchases since, before the store closed, you’ll need to do it again to get those last few tracks through to their new home.

Google Play Music has had a death almost as messy as its life. Launched 9 years ago, it has been two years since we were first informed that it would eventually be replaced by YouTube Music, but it took until August of this year before we were given a clear timeline.

Now, we have to sit back and watch the service slowly shut down, node by node, as we head towards Christmas. If you’re using the app now, enjoy it, because each time could be the last.

The post Google Play Music app begins inevitable global shutdown of service appeared first on xda-developers.

from xda-developers https://ift.tt/31y8rZX
via IFTTT