Google Doesn't Do Content: Brings its Think Quarterly Magazine to U.S.
Google quietly launched Think Quarterly – a glossy print and digital magazine for its clients and partners in the U.K. – a few months ago. Even though the company didn’t want to bring too much attention to it, the publication actually created a bit of a stir, especially because Google always insisted that it wasn’t in the business of creating content (and hence wasn’t competing with the content producers that depend on Google’s search traffic). For the U.S. launch of Think Quarterly, though, Google took a more proactive approach, with a well-timed New York Times piece over the weekend (that barely mentioned the UK version) and an official announcement on the Google blog today.
With the announcement of the U.S. version, Google once again positions Think Quarterly as a B2B publication for its clients. The reality, of course, is that the content – including interesting pieces on the Internet of Things by Ogilvy & Mather’s Russell Davies and a story about how science fiction movies have fortold the future – appeals to a far wider group than just Google’s direct partners.
As the name implies, Think Quarterly is published four times a year and features in-depth articles about a range of topics Google as a company is interested in. The earlier UK editions were always worth a read, as they tended to go beyond basic Google marketing and featured quite a few interesting articles. Judging from the first consolidated U.S./UK edition, chances are this new version will be very similar. You won’t find anything that is very critical about Google, of course, but the broad range of topics makes for some interesting and though-provoking reading.
