Google kills two more products

Print Ads
Two years ago Google started with Print Ads, hoping to get a big part of the ad-revenues in printed media. They started of with a network of 50 newspapers in the US which grew to 800 publications in 2008. However the product was not profitable.

On the Google blog Spencer Spinnell, Director of Google Print Ads, explains :
"While we hoped that Print Ads would create a new revenue stream for newspapers and produce more relevant advertising for consumers, the product has not created the impact that we -- or our partners -- wanted,… …As a result, we will stop offering Print Ads on February 28. For advertisers who have campaigns already booked, we will place their ads through March 31."

iGoogle for the iPhone
Meanwhile Google killed another program: iGoogle for the iPhone. The special Google homepage for iPhone and Android G1 users is gone. Users are now redirected to the mobile version of Google. After a discussion on Downloadsquad a Google employee replied:

“Hey everyone, I have an update for you. We’ve decided to direct iPhone users to the standard mobile iGoogle page. We’ve found that people hit iGoogle from lots of different phones — we want to ensure you’ll all see the same version. Most or all of your existing content should translate over to the standard mobile version. The only exception would be any gadgets that aren’t compatible with most mobile browsers.”

A lot of users are, to say the least, not amused by the closure of iGoogle for the iPhone. At a Google forum they complaint about the lower user experience.
To still get access to the iGoogle homepage on the iPhone there is a trick: point your iPhone browser to http://www.google.com/ig/i?source=mofe however this is not a permanent solution.