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Google Home app will now remind users to link streaming services

The app also now supports live TV services, but the feature doesn't appear to be in Canada yet

Google is rolling out a small update to the Google Home app that will remind you to link your services.

Currently, the Home app will show small bubbles at the top of the screen below the name of a user’s home. These bubbles act as reminders or shortcuts for common features. For example, if you plug in a new device, the Home app will show a bubble prompting you to set it up. Alternatively, the app will prompt you to add more people to the home.

Now, those bubbles can also remind users to configure services with the Home app. For example, if you have Netflix on your phone but haven’t connected your account to Google Assistant, the Home app may surface a bubble to remind you.

Tapping the ‘Link Netflix’ prompt opens a pop-up with a brief description of what linking does. In the case of the Netflix example, linking accounts lets you control playback on connected devices like Chromecast or smart TVs. It also briefly explains the privacy implications of connecting your accounts.

Finally, the pop-up gives users the option to either cancel or to link the account. Choosing to link accounts will open the corresponding login page for the service you want to link.

The Google Home app’s Play Store page notes that it will be “easier to link your favourite media accounts with Google,” which suggests this will work with music streaming services like Spotify as well.

Along with the new shortcuts for linking accounts, 9to5Google reports that the Home app now has a ‘Live TV’ setting menu. It’s available under the ‘Google Assistant services’ header in the Settings menu and lets you connect live TV services to Assistant. However, the only available provider is Sling TV and, at the moment, the feature doesn’t appear to be live in Canada.

Screenshots credit: 9to5Google

Source: 9to5Google

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