Google has today announced that by the end of this year, it will offer an enhanced Podcasts experience on YouTube Music with exclusive features designed to benefit fans and podcasters alike.
Google says this expansion will encompass community-building tools, improved discovery mechanisms, and seamless audio/visual transitions available only on YouTube.
In line with this development, the company will discontinue Google Podcasts later in 2024. As part of this transition, Google will facilitate the migration of Google Podcasts users to Podcasts on YouTube Music.
According to an Edison report, 23% of weekly podcast users in the US favor YouTube as their primary platform, compared to only 4% for Google Podcasts.
“We recognize the importance of a smooth transition and are dedicated to providing fans and podcasters ample time and resources for the shift,” says Google.
For users, this means a straightforward migration tool and the ability to add podcast RSS feeds to their YouTube Music libraries, even for shows not currently hosted on YouTube.
Additionally, those who prefer alternative listening platforms will have the option to download an OPML file of their subscribed shows, which can be imported into supporting apps.
Over the upcoming weeks and months, Google will actively seek feedback to refine the migration process from Google Podcasts to YouTube Music, ensuring it is as seamless and user-friendly as possible.
Once Google is confident in the readiness of the migration tools, it says it will release them, accompanied by clear instructions on their usage.
While this transition may take time, we believe it will result in an outstanding product and a unified destination that benefits creators, artists, and fans, providing the ultimate podcast experience.
We are committed to transparently communicating future changes to our users and podcasters, and we look forward to sharing more details about this process in the coming months.
In the meantime, users will continue to have access to YouTube, YouTube Music, and Google Podcasts.
