Google discontinues Google Reader. RSS - only for smart people.

March 14, 2013 | Author: Adam Levine


Today Google has announced that on July 1 it will close its service for reading RSS - Google Reader. We will not discuss the logic of this decision (or lack of it), but the fact is that in recent years Google virtually monopolized the RSS market and now it can simply kill this technology. But may be, on the contrary, this event will attract more smart users to RSS. After all, RSS - is only for smart people. For those who can think, process information and use it for their business, but not just consume what is given. Google says that Google Reader - was not popular enough. May be. But this is right. Only small percent of people wants to own information, do business, change the world. Others - just follow the crowd.

Most people don't read news. Others visit news sites, read news on Facebook / Twitter or new aggregators, focused on pretty pictures (like Pulse or Flipboard). But when you open a news site or read news on Facebook - you only see the most popular, the most liked news. On the one hand - this is good, because the trash is filtered. But who decides what news is important for you, and what - is the trash? The crowd? Do you really believe that, in this case, the crowd will lead you in the right direction?

RSS-reader - is not a ready dish (not filtered main news). It's a tool that helps you to collect news from different sources in one place, organize them and quickly extract the information that is valuable for you.

Google Reader - was the best service for reading RSS and together with another Google's product (for website owners) Feedburner - ruled most RSS-streams on the Internet. So today (after the Google's announcement) the RSS market is in panic mode. Users write petitions to Google and Barack Obama asking not close Google Reader, looking for alternatives, registering everywhere. The alternative services are trying to refresh their products and to cope with the unexpected load produced by invasion of visitors.

Tomorrow, when everything calms down, we'll publish a list of good Google Reader alternatives and will make an announcement about some changes in our RSS-stream.

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Author: Adam Levine
Adam is an expert in project management, collaboration and productivity technologies, team management, and motivation. With an extensive background working at prestigious companies such as Microsoft and Accenture, Adam's in-depth knowledge and experience in the field make him a sought-after professional. Currently, he has ventured into entrepreneurship, owning a thriving consulting and training agency where he imparts invaluable insights and practical strategies to individuals and organizations, empowering them to achieve their goals and maximize their potential. You can contact Adam via email adam@liventerprise.com