Google Quietly Drops iPhone Optimized iGoogle Page
Jan 19, 2009 at 11:07am ET by Barry Schwartz
I reported this morning at the Search Engine Roundtable that Google seems to have quietly dropped the iPhone version of the iGoogle page. The iPhone iGoogle page used to be at google.com/ig/i, but when iPhone users navigate to google.com/ig/i they are redirected to the standard mobile iGoogle page at google.com/m/ig.
Google said the reason they dropped the iPhone version was because they “want to ensure you’ll all see the same version” of the iGoogle mobile page. But Google made no official announcement on this change. I found this by viewing a thread where it seems like hundreds of iPhone users are upset with this change.
It seems like the change started on Thursday, and, as soon as it happened, many iPhone users began complaining. The large thread I pointed to above has 140 or so comments, but there are dozens of other threads about this change.
So, what is the big deal? Well, Google made a huge deal about having iPhone optimized sites for many of their services, including iGoogle. They have many Google optimized iPhone sites and have promoted them time and time again. So why drop iGoogle without an announcement?
Share, Bookmark & Discuss This Article
More:
Keep Updated: News Via Email | News Via RSS Feed | News Via Twitter
See more stories like this in the Members Library! Check out the Google: Mobile, Google: iGoogle sections of the Members Library where this story is filed. Members also get access to exclusive video content, a members-only weekly & monthly newsletter, plus more. Check out all the benefits!
ONE COMMENT ON Google Quietly Drops iPhone Optimized iGoogle Page
TOP STORIES
SEARCH NEWS BRIEFS
FEATURES & ANALYSIS
RECENT COMMENTS
- kloeprich said " The recent news confirms suspicions I’ve had that News Corp and MS were already in negotiations with"
- Susannah said " I can't wait to try some of these tips this week. What a resource! It's like having a coffee with 21"
- dian said " I haven't tried that yet but if it is the way Mazter is saying I think it won't going to do any good"
FREE DAILY SEARCH NEWS RECAP!
Stay on top of all the search news with our daily summary, the SearchCap newsletter. View a sample ›
STAY CURRENT THROUGHOUT THE DAY
Search Engine Land produces SMX, the Search Marketing Expo conference series. SMX events deliver the most comprehensive educational and networking experiences - whether you're just starting in search marketing or you're a seasoned expert.
SMX Web Site » | SMX Difference » | SMX News »
Join us at an upcoming SMX event:
- SMX West - March 2-4, 2010
- SMX Munich - March 23-24, 2010
- SMX Toronto - April 8-9, 2010
- SMX Sydney - April 22-23, 2010
- SMX Advanced London - May 17-18, 2010
- SMX Advanced Seattle - June 8-9, 2010
- SMX East - October 4-6, 2010
- SMX Stockholm - October, 2010
Learn more about search marketing with our free online webcasts and webinars from our sister site, Search Marketing Now. Upcoming online events include:
- Making Online Marketing Relevant and Responsive: Tactics and A Tool for Success - November 17, 2009
- Ask the Search Engines: War Stories from the World Tour - December 1, 2009
- Turning Clients Into PPC Champions: How to Make PPC Meaningful to "the Other Guys" - December 8, 2009
TRACK US SOCIALLY
- Wall Street Journal Recommended Reading
- Ad Age Power 150 Blog
- Technorati Top 100 Blog
- Techmeme Leaderboard Source
- Best Search Engine Community/Forum
Featured sites from our Blogroll
Get Your Search Engine Land
Premium Membership!
Become a premium member today and receive:
- Express commenting privileges & photo.
- Exclusive videos & newsletters.
- Discounts to our SMX conferences.
- Access to "How To" & Other Archives.
© 2009 Third Door Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Google, Yahoo & Microsoft logos trademark respective companies and used with permission.
Actually, it’s *still* optimized for the iPhone, but now it’s a lighter, less cluttered mess. Besides, the entire argument is fallacious: “So why drop iGoogle without an announcement?” Let’s see if we can answer that – “Um, we at Google tried it and saw it didn’t really work well, so we ditched”. THAT kind of announcement?
Seriously – dumbest. argument. ever.