Google Hangouts, a text, video and voice chat application built into Gmail, was finally closed today. As announced earlier this year, Google is turning Hangouts users to Google Chat, an instant messaging app the company offers to businesses like Slack.
Starting today (November 1), the Google Hangouts web app is no longer available. This is the last Hangouts product to be offered to users. Android and iOS apps were announced to be suspended in July this year. The death process of
Hangouts is arguably slow, with Google directing users to move to Chat services in 2021, and the company later announced in June 2022 that it would prompt Hangout users to move to a chat window in Gmail or apps.
Although most of the information and contacts will be transferred automatically, all chat history will not be moved to Google Chat. The company notes that users should use Google Takeout to download and save copies of their data. Users can retain their Hangouts data until January 2023.
Hangouts was originally a feature of Google+, and later became a standalone application. The messaging service has 5 billion downloads on the Google App Store.
While Google Chat software can never completely replace Hangouts, it provides additional functionality for group conversations, as well as security and collaboration tools such as space and editing files, slideshows or tables side by side with other users. Chat users can also send GIFs and use @ to notify someone in the group.
Google has previously stated that Chat is a better way for users to contact others. Back in June, Google product manager Ravi Canneganti wrote in his official blog: "When we take this last step to bring the remaining Hangouts users to the chat, we hope users will appreciate our continued investment in making chat a powerful place to create and collaborate."
