Google updates logo, continuing rebranding

Continuing the trend of rebranding, Google released a new logo on Tuesday, after its status-change to a sub-company of Alphabet in August.

Alphabet is the newly-created umbrella company that encompasses the traditional Google search engine as well as other sub companies including GoogleX, Calico, Fiber, Google Capital, Google Ventures and Nest. Larry Page, who co-founded Google with Sergey Brin, announced the change on Aug. 10 in a blog post.

“We’ve long believed that over time companies tend to get comfortable doing the same thing, just making incremental changes,” Page wrote. “But in the technology industry, where revolutionary ideas drive the next big growth areas, you need to be a bit uncomfortable to stay relevant.”

Page runs Alphabet as CEO with Brin as President. Sundar Pichai, former Senior Vice President of Product at Google, took over as CEO. All stock shares of Google convert to equal shares of Alphabet, and the stock names (GOOG and GOOGL) remain the same.

Google’s stock fell 4 percent from 633 to 606 since the announcement, after an initial 6 percent spike on to 690.3 on Aug. 11. However, the DJ Industrial Average fell 7 percent in the same time period.

“It was done so that Google could spin out from their primary business which is ad sales for search the businesses that have long term developmental opportunities,” Chris Thompson, Business and Economics teacher said. “It was a way to give investors a clearer picture of where the money was coming from at Google.”

Google’s logo change on Tuesday garnered mixed reviews. Google commissioned a sans-serif font, Product Sans, for the new look.

“Google’s grown tremendously, it’s no longer a startup,” Thompson reflected. “Businesses, just like students, grow up, and they have to change.”

On Sept. 15, Google will celebrate the 18th anniversary of its founding in 1997.