- Google is withdrawing specific domains from the country like Google.co.uk
- Previously used for local content, Google Now uses the location to serve this
- The change will occur in the coming months as a turn to Google.com
Google has confirmed that specific domains will retire (such as Google.co.uk) in favor of a single global domain: Google.com.
Historically, the upper level domains of the country code (CCTLDs) were used to provide locally relevant search results, but the company now uses technology that allows it independently of the higher level domain.
Google used this reason to justify its decision to stop using specific domains in the country: “Due to this improvement, country domains are no longer necessary.”
Citing a 2017 blog post, Google reviewed an update that meant that the location would determine the content that users saw in the search results instead of the CCTLD.
At that time, one in five searches related to the location, and that is a figure that has probably increased in recent years.
“Writing the relevant CCTLD in its browser will no longer take it to the various countries of countries; this preference must be administered directly in the configuration,” said the company in 2017. Therefore, users are already accustomed to not having to use CCTLD to access localized content.
Google confirmed on April 15, 2025 that would redirect users to Google.com as part of a change that will be launched in the coming months.
“It is important to keep in mind that while this update will change what people see in the addresses of their browser, it will not affect the way the search works, nor will we change how we handle the obligations under national laws,” Google emphasized.
In addition to a rationalization effort, it is possible that the transition is also a cost reduction effort for Google. Keeping open dozens of unnecessary domains is probably an expensive business, and one that is no longer necessary thanks to the technology based on the location that allows search results located independently of TLD.
