You can say goodbye to country-specific Google domains
For most South Africans, this change is unlikely to have much impact, as we typically use Google.com by default.
It might seem surprising – especially given how embedded Google is in our everyday lives – but many people still access the world’s most-used search engine through country-specific domains.
Historically, Google used country code top-level domains (ccTLDs) like google.ng for Nigeria or google.com.br for Brazil to deliver more localised search results. But that’s about to change.
According to MyBroadband, Google has announced that users still accessing these localised domains will soon be redirected to the main Google.com portal.
The rollout will happen gradually over the next few months as part of a broader shift in how Google delivers search experiences globally.
Google said, "When you’re searching on Google, we aim to provide the most useful information, and many times that includes providing locally relevant search results."
Over the years, Google has consistently delivered localised results regardless of whether users accessed Google.com or a country-specific domain, making those regional domains largely redundant.
They stressed that while users may notice a change in the URL, the core search experience will remain the same.
Although Google didn’t specifically mention laws like Europe’s GDPR or South Africa’s POPIA, it reassured users that its compliance with national data protection regulations remains unchanged.
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