Update: GCM is deprecated, use FCM
How can I integrate the new Google Cloud Messaging in a PHP backend?
A lot of the tutorials are outdated, and even the current code doesn't account for when device registration_ids are updated or devices unregister. If those items go unchecked, it will eventually cause issues that prevent messages from being received. http://forum.loungekatt.com/viewtopic.php?t=63#p181