Google South Africa has launched Play Music, which offers unlimited access to a large library of music from all major record companies, as well as top local and independent labels.
Google Play Music lets users create an ad-free, interactive radio station from any song or artist. They can add, remove or re-order your station and see what’s coming next. They can browse recommendations from Google’s expert music team and explore songs by genre. The “Listen Now” tab puts artists and radio stations Google thinks users will like front and centre so they can start listening the minute they open their libraries.
Google Play Music also lets users combine the built-in collection with their own collections. They can store 50 000 songs for free online, and listen to them alongside the All Access catalogue on any Android device, or via the web at play.google.com/music. They can also “pin” specific albums and playlists songs so they’re available when the user is offline.
A 30-day free trial offer is available to new Google Play Music users. Additionally, an unlimited Google Play Music subscription is available for an introductory price of R49,99 a month. Users who sign up before 26 January 2016 will retain the introductory pricing for the life of their subscription. Users who sign up after 26 January 2016 will be charged R59.99.
Google SA says it worked with local licensing organisations the Composers, Authors and Publishers Association (CAPASSO) and Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO), to ensure all artists are fairly compensated for work featured in the Play Music store.
Says CAPASSO CEO Nothando Migogo: “As CAPASSO and SAMRO, we encourage and support all music service providers to compensate the rightful owners of the music sold on their platforms. We are pleased to be an integral part of the launch of the Google Play service and look forward to our composers and publishers benefitting from this world-class platform.”
