Google Inc. yesterday announced the launch of their new URL shortener service:
This morning, we launched updated versions of the Google Toolbar and FeedBurner that offer a new URL shortening service from Google called the Google URL Shortener. We mentioned our URL shortener as a feature in both announcements, so we wanted to say a little more about how this product works and why we’re offering it.
People share a lot of links online. This is particularly true as microblogging services such as Twitter have grown in popularity. If you’re not familiar with them, URL shorteners basically squeeze a long URL into fewer characters to make it easier to share with others. With character limits in tweets, status updates and other modes of short form publishing, a shorter URL leaves more room to say what’s on your mind — and that’s why people use them.
The service is located at http://goo.gl and is limited to Google Toolbar and Feedburner only.
Before now, I hardly knew any .gl domain. This made me check the country that onws the .gl ccTLD. It turned out that .gl is the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Greenland. It has been used for sites not necessarily related to that location; it can also be seen as standing for “Good Luck”, “Graphics Library”, “Galician Language” or other things, and has sometimes been marketed this way. .gl domain name registration is currently open to anyone from anywhere.
This latest service from Google is making wonder to want extent they would continue to dominate our web experience. I posted a comment along this line on Facebook, and have been receiving some comments. I am using first names only, delibarately:
Luqman:
Yup. Google is aiming to be the Mecca of the internet where no one goes online except they’d have to use one Google service or the other. On a lighter note, this forces us to conclude that Google=Skynet 🙂Jemila:
Google’s the next world power. Just wait and see.Luqman:
That is if they get ChromeOS right. Other wise MS is still a force to be reckoned with.Emmanuel:
it is unfair for google to lunch a url shortening service. They are just going to kill the smaller firms. Google should flex muscles with big firms in their class. This is not war, it’s an invasion.Luqman:
Emmanuel – They are doing so to help publishers easily populate their feed items to Twitter which has the 140 character limit. Actually I think it’s not a bad thing.
Bit.ly btw has also hit back with a pro version of their url shortening service. This will only get interesting
Join the conversation. Do you think Google is dominating the web landscape negatively or positively?
Yup. Google is aiming to be the Mecca of the internet where no one goes online except they’d have to use one Google service or the other. On a lighter note, this forces us to conclude that Google=Skynet 🙂
Jemila Wunpini Abdulai
Google’s the next world power. Just wait and see.
Luqman Saeed
That is if they get ChromeOS right. Other wise MS is still a force to be reckoned with.
Emmanuel Ekanem
it is unfair for google to lunch a url shortening service. They are just going to kill the smaller firms. Google should flex muscles with big firms in their class. This is not war, it’s an invasion.
Luqman Saeed
Emmanuel – They are doing so to help publishers easily populate their feed items to Twitter which has the 140 character limit. Actually I think it’s not a bad thing.
Bit.ly btw has also hit back with a pro version of their url shortening service. This will only get interesting
I got to try it several times 2day when I made a couple blog post after I’d linked my feedburner feeds to twitter. So far I’m yet 2 see anything ground breaking about it except the big G brand behind it 🙂
I have just installed a Google Toolbar with the sole purpose of trying out their new URL shortener. My first use of it would be for this blog post.
I’m not excited about this service @ all cos in my opinion bit.ly is doing a good job. Besides I tried their recently launched DNS servers and it sucked big time. It took forever for pages to load. Maybe they are yet to have Data Servers/Centers close to Nigeria.
UPDATE: I’m quite impressed with their URL shortner service especially now that’s it’s been integrated into feedburner. My blog posts seem to get indexed in an hour after been posted and tweeted using the URL shortner/Feedburner socialize feature.