Google is giving digital music another go after it unveiled its Google Play Music All Access service on Wednesday at the start of Google's annual I/O developer's conference. The subscription based service offers playlists, suggests music, streams music channels and is accessible on nearly any web browser and Android device.
The service, which begins rolling out today, is the latest in an increasingly crowded music-streaming ecosystem. Apple is reportedly looking into crafting a streaming and recommendation service akin to web radio website, Pandora. Amazon, too, is apparently looking to provide a similar service to accompany its already established digital music store. None of these companies have announced their music stream services yet.
But Google's unveiling confirms previous reports from The Wall Street Journal, which suggested the Internet search giant may launch the service on Tuesday, giving intricate details of the service from anonymous sources.
Those sources claimed Google managed to land deals with Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group for the right to access certain - meaning not all - musical libraries own by each entity. They were right.
Google Play Music All Access will let users peak ahead to the next song on a streaming radio station, granular control over which songs appear and when, rearrange songs and delete songs they don't want to hear. The service also features selections and playlists curated by Google music editors, and can scan a user's play history to recommend future listens.
But the nascent service isn't without it critics.
"Google's obviously a heavy-hitter, so anything it does in this space is newsworthy, but I'm not yet convinced the company understands what it takes to pull together a compelling service," Time Magazine's Matt Peckham said. "Google Play hasn't been that service, and I'm not sure a Google 'Hey, We Can Do What Spotify Does, Too!' Music service distinguishes itself enough for anyone to bother."
Among Peckham's listed concerns are artist compensation, due to the complex nature of music streaming deals; a player which transcends operating systems; an option to play lossless audio music, preserving the quality of the music's sound; no ads for users who pay and locking albums into Google's services so they doesn't disappear later. Google, so far, hasn't addressed any of those concerns.
Google Music Play All Access is available now in the U.S. for $9.99 a month with a 30 day free trial. Early adopters, those who sign up by June 30th, will pay a discounted price of $7.99 a month.
