what you need to know
- Google previously announced that Podcasts would shut down “after April 2,” with the service starting to shut down on Thursday, April 4.
- Both the Android app and web client of Google Podcasts show a “Google Podcasts is no longer available” pop-up, but the site can still play podcasts for the time being.
- YouTube Music will replace Google Podcasts in the Google ecosystem, and users have until July 30 to port their podcast data to another platform.
Another fan-favorite Google app is shutting down for good, as Google Podcasts is no longer available in the United States. Google has been hinting at the end of podcasts to users for months, saying late last year that the service would shut down “after April 2.” Now, as of Thursday, April 4, both the podcast app and the web client are displaying the message “Google Podcasts is no longer available.”
The Google Podcasts app for Android is no longer running and users are only given the option to export their podcasts or learn more about turning it off in the support documentation. Although the website displays the same pop-up message, you can close the message and continue using Google Podcasts on the web client for now. It’s only a matter of time before Google blocks access to podcasts entirely, and we don’t expect the site to be up for much longer.
Google sees YouTube Music, its music streaming service that added support for podcasts last year, as the future of the company’s podcast distribution. YouTube Music is trying to follow a similar model to Spotify, which hosts podcasts in addition to its main source of revenue – music streaming. The general idea is that you’re more likely to subscribe to one of these services if you can get everything you need in one place (including music, podcasts, and even audiobooks).
The jury is still out on whether users actually like this, as many have expressed disappointment with the decision to cancel Google Podcasts. Having multiple media types in one place might sound like a good idea, but it also makes navigating apps like YouTube Music more difficult.
Google Podcasts users will have the opportunity to export their data to other services until July 30, 2024. We have a guide on exporting Google Podcasts data to YouTube Music, as well as a guide on how to migrate Google Podcasts data to a third-party service. Regardless, people can listen to podcasts on YouTube Music without a subscription. However, the app is still not as optimized for podcast distribution as Google Podcasts, lacking features like new episode notifications.
Google is notorious for discontinuing products and services prematurely and often. After nearly six years in operation, Google Podcasts is now part of that reputation.