Google has integrated Songza, the music streaming service with curated playlists that it acquired this summer, into its Google Play Music subscription streaming offering.
Beginning Tuesday, Google Play Music subscribers will be able to select music stations based on time of day, mood or activity. Stations can be downloaded to listen to offline, and songs can be added, removed and re-ordered to fit a person’s taste. These curated stations, which are crafted by music experts, are a hallmark of Songza’s and give Google a music discovery platform similar to Pandora, iTunes Radio and Beats Music.
As part of the update, Google has redesigned the “Listen Now” page to facilitates music discovery.
“With more than 30 million songs to choose from on Google Play, it can be hard to figure out what to listen to,” wrote Google Play Music product managers Brandon Bilinski and Elias Roman in a blog post. “Sometimes you want to build your own mix to rock out with your friends, and sometimes you want to sit back, press play and hear something completely new. Whether you’re at work or on vacation, we’ll find you the best music station to make the experience better.”
Songza, which was founded in 2010 and has grown to 5.5 million subscribers, was acquired in July for a reported $39 million-plus. Google offers a music marketplace through Google Play and also charges $10 a month for a subscription to Google Play Music All Access.
