Google announced in October plans to add Podcasts, and now nearly six months later, they may finally be coming to Google Play Music. The search giant informed the public radio network that on April 18, it will launch the podcasting platform.
In testing for months
According to an internal NPR email obtained by Android Police, the search giant will launch podcasts on Android and other platforms next week. In a letter to its members, NPR stated that the tech firm will launch podcasts inside of Google Play Music, a streaming service similar to Apple Music.
Also NPR noted that the information was under embargo and shouldn’t be “shared or promoted externally until Monday.” The email is part of NPR’s newsletter to subscribers.
Also the feature’s user interface has gone under months of testing, according to reports. According to 9To5Google, some users spotted the new podcast section for the Android app in February. People will be able to download podcasts if they want to listen to them later, and if a new episode is available, the Play Music app will be able to notify them. Also there will be a section showing off featured podcasts and one curated for the user too.
Will Google launch it this time?
Even though it seems highly possible that the podcasts will be available on Google Play Music next week, if the leaked email has incorrect information, this would not be the first time a broadcaster has been seemingly duped by the streaming service. In February, a false alarm for the launch of the podcasting platform was raised by popular podcaster and writer Bill Simmons, who tweeted that his podcast would be available on Google Play later in the month. Of course the news was false, and Bill Simmons later deleted his tweet.
However, we can trust an embargoed email from NPR more than a rapidly deleted tweet as it looks more legitimate. So early next week, we might see the search giant reveal its podcast section. Since the shutdown of Google Listen in 2012, this will mark the first time the search giant will have an app for podcasts.
Commenting on the story, a Google spokesman told The Verge, “That’s a story we’ll have to explore. Check back soon for our next episode.”
