What you need to know
- Google previously announced that Podcasts would be shutting down “after April 2nd,” and the service began shutting down on Thursday, April 4th.
- Both the Google Podcasts Android app and web client will show a pop-up that says “Google Podcasts is no longer available,” but the website will still be able to play podcasts for now.
- YouTube Music replaces Google Podcasts in the Google ecosystem, and users have until July 30th to port their podcast data to another platform.
Another fan-favorite Google app is permanently shutting down as Google Podcasts is no longer available in the US. Google announced late last year that the service would be shutting down “after April 2nd,” and has been urging users to ditch Podcasts for months. Currently, as of Thursday, April 4th, both the Podcasts app and the web client are showing the message “Google Podcasts is no longer available.”
The Google Podcasts app for Android is no longer functional and only gives users the option to export their podcasts or check the support documentation for more information about the shutdown. The website shows the same pop-up message, but you can close it and continue using Google Podcasts in his web client for the time being. It's only a matter of time before Google completely blocks access to his podcast, and we can't expect the website to function much longer.
Google sees its music streaming service YouTube Music, which added support for podcasts last year, as the future of podcast distribution for the company. YouTube Music is trying to follow a similar model to Spotify, which hosts podcasts in addition to music streaming, which is its main source of revenue. 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: music, podcasts, and even audiobooks.
The jury is still out on whether users actually like it, as many have expressed disappointment with the decision to kill Google Podcasts. Having multiple media types in one place may sound like a good idea, but it makes navigating apps like YouTube Music more difficult.
Google Podcasts users can export their data to another service until July 30, 2024. We have a guide to export your Google Podcasts data to YouTube Music and a guide that explains how to migrate your Google Podcasts data to third-party services. . For what it's worth, users can listen to podcasts on YouTube Music without a subscription. However, this app is not as optimized for podcast distribution as Google Podcasts, and lacks features such as new episode notifications.
Google has a notorious reputation for discontinuing products and services early and often. After nearly six years of operation, Google Podcasts is now part of that reputation.
