Google Play Newsstand

Google Play Newsstand was a news aggregator and digital newsstand service by Google. On May 8, 2018, Google announced at Google I/O that Google Play Newsstand was being amalgamated with Google News. Launched in November 2013 through the merger of Google Play Magazines and Google Currents, the service let users subscribe to magazines (in select countries) and topical news feeds, receiving new issues and updates automatically. Content was offered for reading on a dedicated Newsstand section of the Google Play website or through the mobile apps for Android and iOS. Offline download and reading is supported on the mobile apps.

Google Play Newsstand
Developer(s)Google
Initial releaseJune 2012 (2012-06) (as Google Play Magazines) November 20, 2013 (2013-11-20) (as Google Play Newsstand)
Final release(s) [±]
Android4.7.1 / December 5, 2017 (2017-12-05)[1]
iOS4.9 / October 10, 2017 (2017-10-10)[2]
PlatformAndroid, iOS, web
TypeDigital newsstand, Feed reader
Websitenewsstand.google.com

For publishers, Google offers a variety of tools for customization and optimization of their content, as well as the option to include ads through the use of DoubleClick for Publishers. Publishers can restrict geographic access to their content, and employ Google Analytics for aggregated readership data. Publishers can also offer discounts for Google Play subscriptions if a user is already a subscriber on another platform, such as print or digital.

History

Google Play Newsstand was launched on Android on November 20, 2013, through the merger of Google Play Magazines and Google Currents into a single service.[3][4] The Google Currents app on the iOS platform was redesigned and renamed to Google Play Newsstand on September 23, 2014.[5][6] A web application for Newsstand was launched on November 16, 2016.[7][8]

The service has seen two major redesigns since its launch in 2013. The first, in October 2014, added elements from the "Material Design" design language for the release of Android Lollipop.[9] The second, in November 2016, coincided with the launch of the website, and added machine learning technologies to better personalize the content to each individual user, including improved news recommendation, and expanded support for interactive, rich media.[7] On May 15, 2018, Google Play Newsstand, along with Google News and Weather were replaced with Google News, although it wasn't until November 5 that it was phased out completely, removing the Newsstand tab from the Google Play website and the Play Store app. Then in January 2020, magazines were no longer available on Google News, ending all traces of Play Newsstand altogether, except for the website above, which still works even after discontinuation.

Features

Users can subscribe to digital magazines to receive new issues or access to content on an ongoing basis; but, since the replacement of Newsstand with News, users have posted hundreds of negative comments about the change - ranging from the failure to access paid for magazine subscriptions to feeling as if they were being force fed topics which were not relevant to them.[10] Many there have been experiencing hundreds of derogatory comments posted by users on News . Subscriptions renew automatically, with the user charged at the start of each subscription period. Users are notified of price increases.[11] Google states that existing subscribers of a print publication may be eligible for a free digital subscription.[12]

When users purchase a single issue of a magazine, Google claims that it "won't ask for your name, email address, or mailing address. We may anonymously share your postal/ZIP code with the magazine's publisher." If a user becomes a magazine subscriber, "a publisher will receive your name, address, and email address. A publisher may also receive your reading history in the relevant publication. The publisher may use these in accordance with the publisher's privacy policy."[13]

Some magazines offer a trial period.[11]

Users can also subscribe to topical feeds of interest, with the service surfacing news sources that interest the user.[14]

Google Play Newsstand supports PDF and RePub file formats for magazine content, and RSS feeds for news content.[15]

Platforms

On computers, content can be read on a dedicated Google Play Newsstand section on the Google Play website.[7]

On smartphones and tablets, content can be read on the Google Play Newsstand mobile app for the Android and iOS operating systems.[16]

Offline download and reading is supported on the mobile apps.[17]

Newsstand Producer

Google Play Newsstand Producer (formerly Google Currents Producer) is a production environment for content publishers to include their website or blog on Newsstand. It enables publishers to customize the look and feel of their content, and make design decisions that automatically optimize the content so that it can be simultaneously delivered to smartphones and tablets of all sizes and orientations.[18]

Publishers can include ads within articles using Google's DoubleClick for Publishers.[19]

By default, magazines are available to readers worldwide. Publishers can restrict access by either allowing or blocking specific countries. Publishers can also set the primary language for an edition and choose whether they will allow automatic translation.[20]

Publishers can use Google Analytics to analyze aggregated readership data for their content.[21]

Publishers can offer discounts for subscriptions on Google Play Newsstand for users who have an existing print or digital subscription for the content. Google will verify the user's existing subscription before providing a discounted price.[15]

Geographic availability
Map of Global Availability of Google Play Newsstand
Global Availability of Google Play Newsstand

The basic Newsstand service, with topical feeds, is available worldwide. Paid Newsstand content is available in over 35 countries. The full country list includes: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Oman, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and United States.[22]

History of expansion

Availability of paid content was introduced in Italy in April 2014,[23] in France and Germany in May 2014,[24][25] in India, the Netherlands, Russia and Spain in September 2014,[26][27] in Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico and South Korea in December 2014,[28] in Austria, Belgium, Ireland, and Turkey in March 2015,[29] and in Malaysia and Thailand in September 2015.[30]

See also

References
  1. "Google Play Newsstand". APKMirror. Android Police. February 24, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
  2. "Google Play Newsstand". App Store. Apple Inc. February 24, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
  3. Summerson, Cameron (November 20, 2013). "Google Play Newsstand Is Live, Officially Combines Currents And Play Magazines". Android Police. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  4. O'Brien, Terrence (November 20, 2013). "Google Play Newsstand merges Currents, magazines and newspapers on Android today, iOS in 2014". Engadget. AOL. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  5. Perez, Sarah (September 23, 2014). "Google Currents For iOS Now Called Google Play Newsstand Following Big Redesign". TechCrunch. AOL. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  6. Alvarez, Edgar (September 23, 2014). "Google Currents finally becomes Newsstand on iOS". Engadget. AOL. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  7. Shalabi, Sami (November 16, 2016). "Introducing a smarter and more beautiful Google Play Newsstand". The Keyword Google Blog. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  8. Teirstein, Zoya (November 17, 2016). "Google redesigns Play Newsstand and launches it on the web". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  9. O'Brien, Terrence (October 2, 2014). "Google Play Newsstand gets a redesign and new magazine view". Engadget. AOL. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  10. "Google Product Forums".
  11. "Subscriptions on Google Play". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  12. "Digital subscriptions for print subscribers". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  13. "Sharing data with news & magazine publishers". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  14. "Add news sources & topics to personalize Newsstand". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  15. "Google Play Newsstand Program Policies". Newsstand Producer Help. Google Inc. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  16. "Reading news & magazines with Newsstand". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  17. "Download news & magazines to read offline". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  18. "Google Play Newsstand Producer overview". Newsstand Producer Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  19. "Welcome to Google Play Newsstand". Newsstand Publisher Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  20. "Distribute your edition". Newsstand Publisher Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  21. "Measure readership with Google Analytics". Newsstand Publisher Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  22. "Country availability for apps & digital content". Google Play Help. Google Inc. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  23. Summerson, Cameron (April 9, 2014). "Paid Google Play Newsstand Content Now Live In Italy". Android Police. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  24. King, Bertel Jr. (May 21, 2014). "Paid Google Play Newsstand Content Comes To France And Germany". Android Police. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  25. Martonik, Andrew (May 21, 2014). "Paid content from Google Play Newsstand now available in France, Germany". Android Central. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  26. Crider, Michael (September 15, 2014). "Google Play Newsstand Paid Content Is Now Available In India And The Netherlands [Update: Russia And Spain Too]". Android Police. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  27. Arora, Hitesh (September 16, 2014). "Google Play Newsstand Paid Content Arrives in India, Other New Countries". Gadgets360. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  28. Hall, Stephen (December 12, 2014). "Google Play Newsstand comes to four new countries: Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, and South Korea". 9to5Google. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  29. Thorp-Lancaster, Dan (March 25, 2015). "Google Play Newsstand expands paid content to Austria, Belgium, Ireland, and Turkey". Android Central. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  30. King Jr., Bertel (September 9, 2015). "Paid Newsstand Content Launches In Malaysia And Thailand". Android Police. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
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