Google's Pattern of Product Deprecation

• Speaker acknowledges Google's contributions to web development and Chrome ecosystem
• Criticizes Google's tendency to kill products frequently (reference to "Killed by Google" site)
• Distinguishes between early product kills vs. this goo.gl deprecation timing

Google Reader Case Study

• Killed in 2013 after 7 years of existence (11 years ago from recording)
• Google killed it because Reader was main RSS usage method but Google didn't want to invest in RSS future
• Early kill prevented building more user loyalty for unsupported product
• Decision killed RSS adoption similar to how Apple's Flash exclusion killed Flash

Google Domains Fumble

• Google Domains existed for 9 years before being sold to Squarespace in 2023
• May 2023: Google released 2 new TLDs only purchasable via Google Domains
• Gap between new TLD release and Squarespace acquisition: 1 month
• Shows Google appeared to support domains while secretly planning exit
• Damaged user trust and sentiment

goo.gl Deprecation Details

• All goo.gl links will stop working August 25, 2025 (not just new creation blocked)
• New link creation already stopped in 2018
• Google claims 99%+ of links had no activity in past month
• Remaining <1% still represents significant usage
• Links generated via Google apps (like Maps sharing) will continue functioning

Technical Implementation of Shutdown

• Starting August 23, 2024: Interstitial warning page shown before redirect
• Warning percentage will increase over time until shutdown
• Post-shutdown: All links return 404 error
• URL parameter workaround exists to skip warning page

Scale and Impact Analysis

• 3.6 billion URLs shortened with goo.gl (per Majestic data)
• Speaker calculates ~0.5% active usage = 18 million links used monthly that will break
• Examples of impact:
  • Forum posts from 2016 with troubleshooting links
  • Hardware project documentation
  • Historical web content references

Archival Efforts

• Internet Archive's 301Works service preparing since 2009
• 200GB of redirect data already archived
• Goal: provide transparency and permanence for short URL mappings
• Uncertainty about coverage percentage of 3.6 billion links

Google's Recommended Alternatives

• Initially recommended Firebase Dynamic Links
• Firebase Dynamic Links also being deprecated August 25, 2025
• Shows Google's poor transition planning

Third-Party Solutions

• dub.co mentioned as modern shortlink platform alternative
• Started as open-source project
• Claims ability to hot-swap goo.gl links with gg.link
• May provide backup functionality for existing links

Cost and Technical Concerns

• Speaker questions necessity - link shortening is essentially key-value store
• Minimal hosting costs expected
• Potential security concerns with URL obfuscation for phishing/malware
• Privacy concerns if Google published all redirect data

Community Response Needed

• Chrome extension suggested for logging/archiving links
• Community effort required since Google not providing comprehensive solution
• One-year warning window considered insufficient
• Need to index public instances of goo.gl links before shutdown