Google Reader hurt the internet the most

Over the years, Google has killed off a lot of products, with the “Killed by Google” site listing 280 of them as of now. Most were pretty small ones you’ve never heard of, but some were rather substantial.

I was a big fan of Google+, and I’m still upset that they canceled Stadia. While those two had a bigger impact on me personally, I think Google’s biggest loss was Google Reader, because their treatment of that product has helped create some of the problems that the internet is facing today.

Google Reader?

You may not be familiar with what Google Reader was, which is part of the problem. In short, it was a popular RSS reader that helped people consume content on the internet. I’m still a big fan of RSS, but it’s unlikely to ever really make a comeback.

Before Google Reader came along, there were a lot of RSS-focused tools available. Many people I knew used them, and things were great. Google Reader was launched in 2005 and essentially swept up that market. Most people, myself included, moved our subscriptions to Google Reader because it was a great tool and it was free. Some of the other tools charged for their usage, so when users like me left, most of them went out of business.

Then, in 2013, Google killed off Google Reader. Most of the other products were long…