# Google Plus: what it is and how it works · Zorraquino
> Google Plus was Google’s social network, open to the public from 2011 to 2019 and known for its Circles and Hangouts.
URL: https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary/internet/google-plus.html

# Google Plus

Google Plus (Google+) was Google’s social network, open to the public from 2011 to 2019

What it means, how it is used and where it comes up, with its related concepts.

[The whole glossary](https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary)

## What it is and how it works

It introduced Circles, for organising contacts and sharing content with specific groups, and Hangouts, for video calls. Google tied Google+ accounts to other services such as YouTube, which inflated the number of registered profiles even though actual activity was low.

Google shut down the consumer version in April 2019, after discovering flaws that exposed user data and because of low engagement. The business version became Currents, which was also closed in 2023\. Today it is a useful case for studying why a network with wide distribution may still fail to build a community.

Also known as

Google+, G+

Topics

[Technology and data](https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary/category/tecnologia-y-datos)

## Related concepts

- [Social networks](https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary/internet/social-networks.html)
- [Google](https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary/internet/google.html)
- [Social media](https://www.zorraquino.com/en/dictionary/digital-marketing/social-media.html)