Google isn’t done with its attempts at running a social network. On Tuesday, the company gave Google+ a redesign focused on people getting together around shared interests.
When Google+ launched in 2011, it was designed as a competitor to Facebook, focused on connecting people with their friends through a series of ‘circles’. That proved unsuccessful, but people started using the service to discuss things that they’re passionate about, like books and astronomy. Google has built its new design around promoting both its Community groups and its Collections of user-curated posts about specific interests.
Users can opt into the new design (which appears to be rolling out gradually) by signing into the service on the Web and responding when they get a prompt that offers it. Luke Wroblewski, a product director at Google, said in a post to the social network that Google+ apps for iOS and Android will be out in the near future.
The redesign doesn’t have all the features of the old Google+, so people who rely on things like Events will have to stay on the old design (which they can flip back to with the press of a button). It’s not clear whether Google will bring all of the social network’s functionality forward into the new design, but Wroblewski said the company isn’t done developing the product.
As an avid Ingress player, I’ve found that Google+ is the de facto place to discuss the game and plan events around it. The social network is actually surprisingly useful for sharing posts to large groups of people and sharing content from one group to another.
All of this comes as Google has been demoting the social network from its previous place at the centre of the company’s products. Earlier this year, it brought cloud-based photo editing and storage capabilities that previously were tied to Google+ into Google Photos, a standalone service. Hangouts, the chat system that used to be tied to Google+, now has its own website.
In other Google News, YouTube Kids has arrived in Ireland. The app allows parents to present a child-friendly version of the Google-owned video sharing website, blocking certain kinds of content and limiting functionality. Parents will be able to the amount of viewing time per day and remove options like account login, search, uploading, sharing and commenting.
YouTube Kids also presents localised content from popular YouTubers and familiar TV shows like Postman Pat and The Teletubbies.
As well as being available for mobile devices, YouTube Kids is available for Chromecast, Apple TV, consoles and smart TVs.
Reaction to the app hasn’t been universally positive to date in the US. Privacy groups had criticised Google for using the app as a way to sell targeted advertising.
IDG News Service and TechCentral Reporters
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