As expected, Google announced today that it’s adding podcasts to Play Music, months after it originally revealed the feature.
Starting today, Android users in the US and Canada (and folks on the web) will see podcasts inside of Google Play Music. Included are Top Charts to show you popular podcasts as well as playlists featuring different podcasts that share a similar topic. For example, “Learn Something New” includes podcasts like Stuff You Should Know and How To Do Everything to help you learn some new information or skill, and “Getting Lost in a Story” offers shows like Radiolab and Reply All.
Google Play Music’s podcasts functionality also includes subscription support, letting you download older episodes and get notifications every time a new episode comes out.
Google’s announcement doesn’t mention when podcast support might be coming to the iOS version of Play Music, so for now, you iPhone users will have to stick to Apple’s own Podcasts app or a third-party offering.
While there’s no shortage of podcast players already available on Android, Google’s Play Music looks like a nice option. Not only is it built in to the Play Music app, negating the need to download a third-party app from the Play Store, but it also includes the aforementioned playlist feature. That could be a good way for listeners to discover new podcasts to listen to based on a style of podcast that they already enjoy.
If you’re an Android user in the US or Canada, be on the lookout for podcasts in your Play Music app soon.