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Google announced on Tuesday it will be scrapping its Google Podcast app — which has been downloaded more than 500 million times — from 2024.
As part of the controversial move, listeners will be encouraged to migrate to the YouTube Music app to listen to their podcasts— but not everyone is happy about the all-in-one listening product.
Killing off Google Podcasts, after discontinuing Google Music Play in 2020, will enable the tech giant to move all of its audio offerings into one product.
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“We’ll be increasing our investment in the podcast experience on YouTube Music — making it a better overall destination for fans and podcasters alike,” YouTube said on Tuesday.
New features mimicking Google Podcast capabilities will be introduced on YouTube Music so that by the time the migration is complete, users shouldn’t be missing out on much, it said.
The company removed the subscription requirement for podcast listening on YouTube Music in the US this year, and introduced access to downloads, background play in places such as the car and on smart speakers, and the ability to switch between audio and video podcasts.
“We plan to make Podcasts on YouTube Music globally available before the end of the year,” YouTube said, adding that listeners were currently “living in the golden age of podcasts”.
Migration assistance will be offered to users, and the company is currently collating feedback on the process to formulate advice to support the months-long phase out.
“For users, it means a simple migration tool and the ability to add podcast RSS feeds to their YouTube Music library, including shows not currently hosted by YouTube,” it said.
Google said the move was supported by Edison Research data on user behaviours, which reports 23 per cent of weekly podcast users in the US say YouTube is their most frequently used service, versus just 4 per cent for Google Podcasts.
Australian data on podcast listening by Edison Research does not make the same direct comparison, omitting Google Podcast from its data all together, but noted 61 per cent of surveyed users listened to podcasts on YouTube Music, 6 per cent fewer than Spotify.
It also said the move comes as an opportunity for podcast creators to expand their audiences with both audio and video formats.
But listeners rallied online, making their attachment to the podcast-specific app’s simplicity known.
“The main reason I love Google Podcasts is that it’s an app that does one thing right,” one person wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“Google Podcasts is dying in favour of booting its functionality to YouTube Music. Does anyone else prefer just having a dedicated app for podcasts? Just me? I’m annoyed,” another wrote.
“What’s the point of killing clean, focused, simple products and adding them to a messy, ad-littered environment?” another wrote.
“Google. Can I please acquire Google Podcasts from you? If you don’t see value in it, I’m more than happy to take it off your hands,” another said.
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