Google has a penchant for repetition. For instance, why have one messaging app when you can have a handful (Allo, Android Messages, Hangouts etc.)? And while that method isn't exactly yielding overwhelmingly positive results, it seems the software giant is taking its approach to podcast platforms now, as well. An incubator for experimental products within Google, Area 120, is quietly developing an audio platform that, according to a recent trademark filing, allows users to "search, access and play digital audio files and to share links to audio files."

The software in question is called Shortwave, and may be a more social take on podcast listening — or at least, that's how Google's press statement makes it seem.

“One of the many projects that we're working on within Area 120 is Shortwave, which helps users discover and consume spoken word audio in new ways,” a Google spokesperson told Android Police via email.

Google declined to say anything more on the subject due to it being a "very early experiment," but a podcast app that helps with finding new gems among the vast and ever-increasing libraries of audio content (most of which has undergone little to no vetting) would indeed be useful.

Currently, Google offers Android users the podcast section in the Google Play Music app and the exceedingly minimal Google Podcasts app, which has a million downloads and is rated an underwhelming 3.4 stars out of 5. Comparatively, third-party free pod platform Podcast Player by Castbox has 5 million downloads and 4.6 stars, while the $4.99 Pocket Casts app has 500,000 downloads and a rating of 4.6 stars. All that to say, there's definitely room for improvement.

One can only hope that if Google brings this project to term it chooses to merge it with its current standalone app, rather than launch an entirely new platform. Whether that's likely is another question.