Search-engine giant Google will no longer require users to create a Google+ profile to log onto other Google products.
Google+ was launched in 2011, positioned as a competitor to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. However, Google+ as a social network never took off.
In a bid to simplify the login process across its products, Google started requiring all users to create a Google+ profile to log on to YouTube, Gmail, Google Hangouts and others. Users reacted by saying the company was forcing them to use a social network they were not interested in.
"When we launched Google+, we set out to help people discover, share and connect across Google like they do in real life. While we got certain things right, we made a few choices that, in hindsight, we've needed to rethink," says Bradley Horowitz, Google VP of streams, photos and sharing.
Users will now be required to have a Google account to access these services; an account is not public, followable or searchable like a Google+ profile. All that is needed for a Google account is a Gmail address and a password.
"People have told us that accessing all of their Google stuff with one account makes life a whole lot easier. But we've also heard that it doesn't make sense for your Google+ profile to be your identity in all the other Google products you use," says Horowitz.
This change will be implemented over the next few months, starting with YouTube. Users who have a Google+ account, but don't make use of it, will be able to delete profiles.
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