Google Currents (social app)
Defunct internal enterprise communication software developed by Google
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Google Currents was a software application developed by Google for internal enterprise communication.[2][3] It is one of many products that constitute the Google Workspace line of products.[4]
| Google Currents | |
|---|---|
| |
| Other names | Google+ for G Suite |
| Developer | |
| Initial release | July 6, 2020[1] |
| Platform | Android, iOS, Web app |
| Successor | Spaces in Google Chat |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | Google Currents' Introduction & Features at the Wayback Machine (archived 2022-01-04) |
Google Currents was different from the also defunct Google app of the same name, which provided users with access to an electronic library of magazines from 2011 to 2013.[5][6] It was replaced by the Spaces feature in Google Chat in March 2023. Google announced shutting down for business and education on July 5, 2023.[7]
History and development
Originally called Google+ for G Suite, Currents was, up until its closure in 2023, the sole remnant of Google's defunct social network Google+, which counted more than 375 million active members in 2016 but struggled to compete with the largest social network Facebook.[8] A user profile in the platform was a publicly visible account and included fundamental characteristics of social networking services.[9] Currents provided functionality that supported interdisciplinary collaborative experience alongside other G-Suite software and tools.[10] Communities within the platform can be used for posting discussions and topics while users can follow communities, topics, or other users to keep up with published content.[11] It was shut down entirely for personal and brand use on April 2, 2019.[12][13] It also offered as the successor for Google internal company communication.[8]
In June 2020, Google Currents was in Public Beta for Google Workspace clients. A free trial could also be requested.[14][15][16]
On February 10, 2022, Google announced that it would be planning to "wind down" Google Currents and transition its users to the Spaces feature in Google Chat the next year.[17]
See also
- Google Wave
- Google Buzz
- Google+, the defunct and formerly related social network
- Google Currents (2011–2013), the unrelated discontinued news app
- Yammer, an analogous private social network for Microsoft 365 customers
- LinkedIn, business social media platform.