Google hangout isn’t shutting down but will be splitting into Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet as stated by Google’s product lead.
Google Hangouts Not Shutting Down.
Hangout is an app debuted in 2013 used for business purpose meetings. The conference calls made in hangouts were secured and simplified for which it was widely used by different organizations.
Recently an update posted on 9to5Google stated that Google Hangouts was shutting down. According to the article, some sources confirmed the shutdown of Google Hangouts by 2020. This news created a wave of articles in just a few hours. But it was never going to happen. In a tweet responding to this article, product lead for Google Hangouts, Scot Johnston denied it calling “Shoddy Reporting“.
Hey @hallstephenj, I run Hangouts and this is pretty shoddy reporting. No decisions made about when Hangouts will be shut down. Hangouts users will be upgraded to Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet. Your source is severely misinformed. You can do better.
— Scott Johnston (@happyinwater) 1 December 2018
As stated in the tweet, rather than shutting it down the hangouts will be upgraded into Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet. Users will be migrated to Chat and Meet. Both of these apps will perform differently. As the name suggests Hangouts Chat will be used for text-based conversations while Hangouts Meet will allow holding conference calls in a more simplified and secure way.
1/ I can’t comment on your sourcing, since I don’t have any details. The frustrating part about your reporting is it leaves the reader to jump to dramatic conclusions, because it is only half the story. Hangouts users will be migrated to Chat and Meet.
2/ So while that will result in the eventual shut down of Hangouts classic (as we now call it), it doesn’t imply we are ending support for the use case supported by the product: messaging and meetings.
— Scott Johnston (@happyinwater) 1 December 2018
Google Hangouts has lost a huge amount of users during its 5 years period. Splitting it into two separate apps doesn’t seem right to me for making an app alive again that provided both of these in one place. For now, if you were stunned on hearing Google Hangouts was going to shut down, there is no need to worry any more.