Perhaps in response to browser notification fatigue, Google recently announced their efforts to simplify browser notifications through their popular Chrome platform. On Friday, the tech behemoth announced this program. First and foremost, it seeks to address the age-old conundrum of pesky messages that have frustrated consumers for ages.
To tackle some of these problems, Google’s new approach will automatically turn off notifications from sites users haven’t engaged with in a while. This major shift helps users who are just bombarded with alerts, the vast majority of which are completely ignored. This is a giant problem as evidenced by research showing that fewer than 1% of all notifications even get interacted with by users.
Perhaps most surprisingly, Google recognizes the importance of “bad” notifications. At the same time, it recognizes that being overly alert-happy will drive users away. The firm plans to persist notifications even for installed web apps. It will disable notifications for sites with little user engagement and a lot of notifications sent. Through this decision, we hope to improve user experience by filtering out noise from sites that users are likely no longer interested in seeing.
The feature, which has been in beta testing in advance of this formal release, Google has been responsive to user feedback and has iteratively refined its approach. By disrupting the ability of certain websites to issue pop-up alerts and updates, Google aims to create a more user-centric browsing environment.
Industry expert Sarah Perez, a journalist for TechCrunch since August 2011, detailed the significance of this new feature. With previous experience in I.T. across various sectors, including banking and retail, Perez has provided valuable insights into technological advancements and user experience issues. If you’re looking for more expert commentary or deeper insights, don’t hesitate to contact her. You can email her at sarahp@techcrunch.com, or message her securely on Signal at sarahperez.01.
