Google Play Music gets machine learning-based features

Google Play Music serves as the company’s default app for buying tunes and playing them on Android devices. An article published today by Elias Roman, Lead Product Manager at Google, announced that it would receive a full revamp.

Google Play Music exists on all Android-powered devices and allows the user to organize and reproduce downloaded, or SD card loaded content like other apps such as iTunes.

Google offers a subscription to Music that gives the user access to “millions of songs,” with a 30-day free trial. After that, they have to pay $5.99 a month.

The music streaming app currently allows users to upload their songs and to listen to music across platforms (including iOS and the web). However, its free version only lets them upload a total of 50,000 songs and is not ad-free.

Google Play update
Google Play new interface. Image: Google.

Google Play Music will benefit from machine learning

Play Music will start using technology to garner data about music tastes but will also expand to include factors like location, user activity, and even current weather to offer the listener a more personalized and enjoyable experience.

The developers experimented with machine learning so the app can suggest users specific playlists based on their taste.

Google Play will also create playlists for specific situations like working out and working hours, among others. The new update will be available for all platforms in 62 countries around the world.

Google Play has a 30-day free trial. Image: Venture Beat.
Google Play has a 30-day free trial. Image: Venture Beat.

With Google Play, the perfect music finds you

These personalized playlists will be offered on a revamped Home Screen at all times, once the users log in, something that Google usually requires. The process will only need the customer to allow Google using the location information and other data.

The music experience is intended to improve upon continuous usage and the new music trends that appear on the charts. Keeping customers updated by offering them popular singles, artists, and albums consistently is ultimate the objective.

Upon subscription, there is another updated feature. Users will always have an available offline default playlist, based on their recent listening activity. This does not require them to download music. The app does it for them.

“With the new Google Play Music, we’re here to help with the perfect soundtrack for the things you do every day,” Roman writes. “After all, the only thing better than finding the perfect music is the perfect music finding you.”

Source: Google