Google to launch new audio news service

Google will partner with various media outlets to launch an audio news service for Assistant, the company announced Tuesday. The new audio launch, Your News Update, will offer customized news feed with content from CBS, Fox News, CNN and other media partners including The Washington Post, Axios, Cheddar, and the NBA.

The new service is now available on smart speakers and the Google Assistant app. The tech-giant refers to the new launch as a “radio news experience” for the digital audience.

Your News Update will basically work by providing the user a series of one- or two-minute news clips based on the user’s interests. The app would cover sports, the stock market and news of the area in which the user lives.

Additionally, the news clips will lengthen in time as they tailor themselves to the user’s interests.

As Google will be partnering with various media outlets to provide this service, the media outlets will be paid to participate in the audio news service, and the content they contribute will not be exclusive to Google.

“This is a new and nascent market so we want to support publishers as they create this content, since we strongly believe in the audio web and it’s potential,” said a Google spokesperson.

Google’s Your News Update announcement comes as the company, along with rival Facebook, are pursuing broader initiatives to support news publishers. The news also comes as tech companies explore how to redesign products for an age of computing that is increasingly being designed by voice.