Google today announced a free, ad-supported tier of Google Play Music in the United States.
The free version of Google Play Music will play ads in between songs every once in a while. In addition, Google has also taken away the ability to listen to any song you like. Instead, if is offering a curated playlists to suit your every mood, occasion and day. These curated playlists have been available to paid Google Play Music subscribers since last year.
Google’s implementation of free, ad-supported streaming music service is different than Spotify, which allows you to listen songs from any artist or album you want. Other restrictions in the free tier of Play Music include a restriction to skip only six songs per hour, the inability to rewind tracks or even see which is the next track.
Google’s Play Music streaming service is not exactly as popular as Spotify, and Apple’s upcoming Apple Music is likely to overshadow it within a few weeks of its launch. However, with the launch of a free, ad-supported streaming tier, Google should be able to still keep its streaming service relevant.
