Google+

Google+
	Final logo before the 2019 shutdown
Type of site	Social networking service; Identity service;
Available in	Multilingual
Predecessor(s)	Google Wave (2009–2010); Google Buzz (2010–2011); Orkut (2004–2014);
Owner	Google
Created by	Vic Gundotra; Bradley Horowitz;
URL	Archived official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
Registration	Required; no longer available
Users	200 million (2019)
Launched	June 28, 2011
Current status	Defunct: Discontinued for personal and brand accounts (April 2, 2019); All users transitioned to Google Currents (G-Suite enterprise accounts; discontinued in 2023, all G-Suite enterprise accounts migrated over to Google Chat);
Written in	Java, JavaScript

Google+ (sometimes written as Google Plus, stylized as G+ or g+) was a social network owned and operated by Google until it ceased operations in 2019. The network was launched on June 28, 2011, in an attempt to challenge other social networks, linking other Google products like Google Drive, Blogger, Adsense, and YouTube. The service, Google's fourth foray into social networking, experienced strong growth in its initial years, although usage statistics varied, depending on how the service was defined. Three Google executives oversaw the service, which underwent substantial changes that led to a redesign in November 2015.

Due to low user engagement and disclosed software design flaws that potentially allowed outside developers access to personal information of its users,^[3] the Google+ developer API was discontinued on March 7, 2019, and Google+ was shut down for business and personal use on April 2, 2019.^[4]

^ Cite error: The named reference Gundotra2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference Google+: Coding was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Smith, Ben (October 8, 2018). "Project Strobe: Protecting your data, improving our third-party APIs, and sunsetting consumer Google+". Retrieved February 21, 2019.
^ Snider, Mike (February 1, 2019). "Google sets April 2 closing date for Google+, download your photos and content before then". USA Today. Retrieved February 1, 2019.

[Gundotra2011-1] Cite error: The named reference Gundotra2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Google+:_Coding-2] Cite error: The named reference Google+: Coding was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[project_strobe-3] Smith, Ben (October 8, 2018). "Project Strobe: Protecting your data, improving our third-party APIs, and sunsetting consumer Google+". Retrieved February 21, 2019.

[USAToday-4] Snider, Mike (February 1, 2019). "Google sets April 2 closing date for Google+, download your photos and content before then". USA Today. Retrieved February 1, 2019.

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