Google blames mobile devices for Google Reader’s demise

Google announced earlier this year that its popular RSS reader would be discontinued as of July 1st. Users were outraged at the decision, however a company executive has now launched a formal defense of the move, saying it had to be done. Google News and social products senior director Richard Gringras explained in an interview with Wired that Google Reader was an old model for consuming news. In the age of smartphones and tablets, the executive noted, consumption of news is “a near-constant process.” He said that people no longer read news at breakfast or at the end of the day, but rather throughout the day on their mobile devices. With Google Reader out of the picture, the company will continue to develop services like Google Now and Google+ to help users get their daily news.