Europe Blog
Our views on the Internet and society
Launching voices of the Mediterranean
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
The Mediterranean Sea is the cradle of Western civilization - but all too often today is seen as an area of conflict. Together with the Voces Fondation, we are today launching a project designed to promote the development of a Mediterranean as a common place of respect, peace and solidarity.
Our focus is engage young people between the ages of 14 and 22 from Spain in the West to Palestine in the East that are interested in photography and audiovisual arts. Voces Foundation already has created a G+ page (
Voices of the Mediterranean
) where people can share pictures and videos about what the Mediterranean means, highlighting those aspects that bring us together instead of those aspects that separate the different cultures and countries.
Specific topics that will be discussed include access to water and other natural resources and to access to Internet and new technologie. Other subjects range from education and culture; gastronomy; entrepreneurship with social impact - and above all, peace. Actors and singers including actress Elisa Mouliaá or the musician and composer Rash already are contributing. Participate using the hashtag #Nostrum.
At the end of the project, we will hold a contest to choose the most interesting photos, painting and videos. Please contribute!
P Esperanza Ibáñez Lozano, Public Policy Manager
Hallo, hola, olá to a new powerful Google Translate app
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Often the hardest part of traveling is navigating the local language. If you've ever asked for "pain" in Paris and gotten funny looks, confused "embarazada" with "embarrassed" in Mexico, or stumbled over pronunciation pretty much anywhere, you know the feeling. We’ve now updated the
Translate app
on
Android
and
iOS
to transform your mobile device into an even more powerful translation tool.
Instant translation with Word Lens
The Translate app already lets you use camera mode to snap a photo of text and get a translation for it in 36 languages. From today, you can instantly translate text. While using the Translate app, just point your camera at a sign or text and the translated text will overlaid on your screen—even if you don't have an Internet or data connection.
This instant translation currently works for translation from English to and from French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish, and we’re working to expand to more languages.
Have an easier conversation using the Translate app
When talking with someone in an unfamiliar language, conversations can... get... sloowwww. While we’ve had real-time conversation mode on Android since 2013, our new update makes the conversation flow faster and more naturally.
Starting today, simply tap the mic to start speaking in a selected language, then tap the mic again, and the Google Translate app will recognize which of the two languages are being spoken, letting you have a more fluid conversation. For the rest of the conversation, you won’t need to tap the mic again—it'll be ready as you need it. Asking for directions to the Rive Gauche, ordering bacalhau in Lisbon, or chatting with your grandmother in her native Spanish just got a lot faster.
These updates will be coming to both Android and iOS, rolling out over the next few days. This is the first time some of these advanced features, like camera translations and conversation mode, will be available for iOS users.
More than 500 million people use Google Translate every month, making more than 1 billion translations a day to more easily communicate and access information across languages. Today’s updates take us one step closer to turning your phone into a universal translator and to a world where language is no longer a barrier to discovering information or connecting with each other.
Posted by Barak Turovsky, Product Lead, Google Translate
An update on Google News in Spain
Thursday, December 11, 2014
After 9/11, one of our engineers, Krishna Bharat, realized that results for the query “World Trade Center” returned nothing about the terrorist attacks. And it was also hard to compare the news from different sources or countries because every web site was a silo. That’s how Google News was born and today the service is available in more than 70 international editions, covering 35 languages.
It’s a service that hundreds of millions of users love and trust, including many here in Spain. It’s free to use and includes everything from the world’s biggest newspapers to small, local publications and bloggers. Publishers can choose whether or not they want their articles to appear in Google News -- and the vast majority choose to be included for very good reason. Google News creates real value for these publications by driving people to their websites, which in turn helps generate advertising revenues.
But sadly, as a result of a
new Spanish law
, we’ll shortly have to close Google News in Spain. Let me explain why. This new legislation requires every Spanish publication to charge services like Google News for showing even the smallest snippet from their publications, whether they want to or not. As Google News itself makes no money (we do not show any advertising on the site) this new approach is simply not sustainable. So it’s with real sadness that on 16 December (before the new law comes into effect in January) we’ll remove Spanish publishers from Google News, and close Google News in Spain.
For centuries publishers were limited in how widely they could distribute the printed page. The Internet changed all that -- creating tremendous opportunities but also real challenges for publishers as competition both for readers’ attention and for advertising Euros increased. We’re committed to helping the news industry meet that challenge and look forward to continuing to work with our thousands of partners globally, as well as in Spain, to help them increase their online readership and revenues.
Posted by Richard Gingras, Head of Google News
Blasting off from a LaunchPad in Barcelona
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Barcelona is already known for its sunshine and seashore. Now, according to the
Financial Times
, it aims to become just as well known for its start-ups. Last week, Google LaunchPad took place in the Catalan capital. The one-week program is designed to accelerate the growth of local, early stage tech companies, and part of our
Startup Launch program
. It’s our fourth LaunchPad in Europe, following events in Tel Aviv, London, Sao Paulo, Berlin and Paris.
A strong case exists for Barcelona to become a start-up hub, the Financial Times says. “Barcelona is known as the ‘north of the south’ – combining a cosmopolitan business-friendly city with Mediterranean coast sunshine. Two international business schools,
Iese
and
Esade
, attract talent from across the world. The city hosts one of the world’s top supercomputing centres.”
At our LaunchPad, local incubators
itnig
,
Incubio
,
Connector
,
Tetuan Valley
and
Caixa Capital Risc
picked 14 startups to attend. During the week, some 30 mentors work individually with them on their projects, as they are experts in their fields and in most cases experienced entrepreneurs. Workshops cover product strategy, UX/UI, technology and marketing.
This initiative underlines our commitment, once again, to Spanish entrepreneurship. Despite suffering a drastic downturn in the financial crisis, the country is emerging as strong start-up nation. According to the
Map of Entrepreneurship
in Spain 2014, 95% of entrepreneurs decide to become so out of motivation rather than necessity AND 16% of the new projects are launched Catalonia. Barcelona always will be a beautiful city. It is in the process of becoming a modern Internet hub.
Posted by Virginia Wassmann, Communications Manager, Madrid
YouTube music hits the right note
Thursday, November 13, 2014
You watched the Belgian singer Stromae perform
Papaoutai
200+ million times on YouTube, helping propel the song about his father to the top of the charts in France and into a global success. And that’s all just for one song.
This week, we’re making it easier to find new music on YouTube and rock out to old favorites by launching a new paid subscription service called
Music Key
. It
lets you watch and listen to music without ads, in the background or offline and is available already in the United Kingdom, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain, with more countries to come soon.
If you’re interested in getting more info on the beta, you can let us know at
youtube.com/musickey
.
Music Key represents a big step forward in our blossoming partnership with the music industry. We've struck new deals with the major producers, thousands of independent record labels, collecting societies and music publishers.
Thanks to your music videos, remixes, covers, and more, you’ve made YouTube the place to go for the music fan.
YouTube benefits both the established musicians as well as newcomers, sending them more
than
$1 billion
.
Of course, YouTube is much more than music. Other types of content creators - from educational to comedy shows - also are finding an audience earning money in our partnership programs. More
-one million channels today earn revenue through the YouTube Partner Program. Thousands of channels make six figures annually. We look forward to continuing to develop new online opportunities for Europe's creators.
Posted by the YouTube Music team, which recently watched
“Michael Jackson - Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' - YouTube Mix.”
Google Campus is coming to Spain!
Monday, October 6, 2014
Google began as a startup in garage, and supporting startups remains a very important part of our DNA. We continually see that when people are empowered to dream big and are empowered to take action, that entrepreneurs turn those ideas into growing companies, creating a powerful startup community, solving big problems, and supporting a thriving economy.
So today we're thrilled to announce Campus Madrid, a new home for innovation in Spain.
Campuses
are Google's spaces for entrepreneurs to learn, connect, and build companies that will change the world. At Campus, entrepreneurs get unparalleled access to mentorship and trainings led by their local startup community, experienced entrepreneurs, and teams from Google.
Two years ago we opened our first Campuses,
Campus London
and
Campus Tel Aviv
. We've seen incredible momentum in these two spaces. In 2013, startups at Campus London raised more 34M GBP, and created more than 570 jobs. We recently announced new Campus locations coming to Warsaw, Poland, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Seoul, South Korea. Entrepreneurs at Campus Madrid will benefit from this global network of Campuses, including our Campus Exchange program, giving entrepreneurs access to other workspaces around the world.
Google Campus London
Google Campus Tel Aviv
In addition to global opportunities, we will run many new programs in our Madrid location, including
Campus for Moms
,
CampusEDU
and Office Hours with Googler mentors.
We decided to open a Campus in Madrid because of the thriving entrepreneurial spirit in Spain.
We have seen the booming entrepreneurial community in Spain and are excited to join the local community in making it even stronger. Our hope is that Campus Madrid will supercharge tech entrepreneurs, strengthen the startup ecosystem and encourage even more innovation in Spain, Europe, and beyond.
We look forward to opening our doors next year and filling Campus Madrid with startups!
Posted by Mary Grove, Director of Google for Entrepreneurs
Seeking advice on the Right to be Forgotten
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Earlier this summer we announced the formation of an
Advisory Council
on the Right to be Forgotten. As the Council begins its work, it is seeking
comment
from experts on the issues raised by the CJEU ruling. Experts will be considered for selection to present to the Council in-person during public consultations held this fall, in the following cities:
September 9 in Madrid, Spain
September 10 in Rome, Italy
September 25 in Paris, France
September 30 in Warsaw, Poland
October 14 in Berlin, Germany
October 16 in London, UK
November 4 in Brussels, Belgium
The Council welcomes position papers, research, and surveys in addition to other comments. We accept submissions in any official EU language. Though the Council will review comments on a rolling basis throughout the fall, it may not be possible to invite authors who submit after August 11 to present evidence at the public consultations.
Stay tuned for details on the Council’s activity.
Posted by Betsy Masiello, Google Secretariat to the Council
Chromebooks come to five more European countries - in verse
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Chromebooks are coming to nine more nations
to improve computing for all generations.
So we’d like to say our Hellos
to our new global Chromebook fellows:
Kia ora to our New Zealand mates,
where getting on-line will have shorter waits.
Kumusta to new friends in the Philippines,
a better way of computing is what this means.
Hallo to all the folks in Norway
Speed, simplicity and security are coming your way.
Hej Hej to the people in Denmark
Built-in virus protection will be your new computing benchmark.
To Mexico and Chile, Hola we say
Tons of apps and free automatic updates are starting today.
And in the coming weeks -- very soon, you’ll see --
Chromebooks will be in Belgium, Spain and Italy.
Chromebooks are easy to share, manage and use,
With lots of
shapes, colors and sizes
to choose.
Stay safe with your data stored in the cloud,
A smart pick like Chromebook will make your mom proud.
When Chromebooks in these countries alight,
We hope our new global friends find some computing delight.
Posted by David Shapiro, Director of Chromebook Marketing and Occasional Versifier
GEN 2014: challenging journalism’s status quo
Monday, May 19, 2014
The countdown has begun. The
Global Editors Network
has announced its shortlist of 75 finalists for the
Data Journalism Awards
, supported by Google and the Knight Foundation. Winners will be named at GEN’s upcoming summit in Barcelona on June 12.
The young field of data journalism--analyzing large datasets to unearth news stories and information--is growing tremendously. The 2014 Data Journalism Awards received a record 520 submissions, 200 more than last year. A total of 65 countries were represented. While some newsrooms around have installed dedicated specialists to focus on reporting based on data, Mirko Lorenz, Director of the 2014 Data Journalism Awards, said solo journalists accounted for the vast majority of submissions. “Journalists are taking it on themselves to use data for projects, for experimentation,” Lorenz said.
GEN champions journalistic innovation, demonstrating how the online world offers great opportunities for the future of journalism. Its summit this year in Barcelona is entitled “Mobile. Video. Data. Challenge the Status Quo.” Sessions and keynotes will revolve around the idea that these three things must be top-of-mind in the modern newsroom.
Speakers
range from the Guardian’s lead digital strategist Wolfgang Blau to Pulitzer Prize winner Seymour Hersch.
This is GEN’s fourth annual summit - take a look below at highlights from last year’s event in Paris.
This year’s summit promises to be three days of hard work and learning - and also a treat. One of the featured speakers will be Ferran Adria, the famed Catalan chef and founder of the restaurant El Bulli. See you in Barcelona.
Posted by Peter Barron, Director, Communications, Europe, Middle East and Africa
Working with news publishers in Madrid
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
High-quality content is important to the web and we are committed to working with publishers to ensure that readers find their content. Our Publisher Advisory Council, bringing together our advertising and product teams with top media executives, meets about twice a year since 2009 in different venues in Europe.
The Council’s next session opens tomorrow in Madrid. Although planned months ago, it comes at important time, just as a debate has opened in Spain about whether publishers should be paid for linking their content. At the Advisory Council, we will concentrate on forging win-win business deals.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy
recently made the same point, urging Internet companies and publishers to reinforce their commercial agreements.
The Council’s goal is to create a virtuous circle: more, better engaged users, generating more revenue, and ultimately enabling greater investment in higher quality content. Google drives 10 billion clicks a month to publisher websites for free. Each click represents a business opportunity, offering the chance to show ads, register users and win loyal readers. In 2013, we shared more than $9 billion with our
AdSense
publisher partners.
Beyond our AdSense advertising program, other Google tools allow publishers to make money from their content. DoubleClick offers ways to show display ads. Ad Exchange maximizes the value of ad space on an impression-by-impression basis. YouTube channels, video embeds and YouTube Direct create new opportunities for publishers to create new video sources of revenue.
We are keen to help news organisations make the transition to digital journalism. For 2014 our
Google Journalism Fellowship
will fund 11 students a summer internship with organizations steeped in everything from investigative journalism to press freedom and to those helping the industry figure out its future in the digital age. In Europe, we have partnered with the Global Editors Network on a series of "Editors Lab" events, including this recent
hackathon
in Barcelona. We funded Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism’s
report
on the future of journalism and Oliver & Ohlbaum’s
report
on the impact of the Internet on journalism.
The Internet lives on the oxygen of information. It needs quality journalism. Commercial agreements with publishers are a win-win solution and preferable to regulations that damage innovation as a pillar of the economic recovery. We are ready to play our part in working with the news industry to find a way for it to thrive in the new digital age.
Posted by Bárbara Navarro, Director Public Policy for Southern Europe
Competing for the values of net sportsmanship
Friday, March 7, 2014
Real Madrid
is one of the world’s great athletic clubs. In addition to winning football and basketball championships, it is keen to promote sportsmanship, on and off the field. We worked with the club’s foundation to run a competition called
"First Prize for the Promotion of Internet Values
.”
More than 4,000 children from the Real Madrid Sport School competed, producing essays and videos promoting the values of sportsmanship for the Internet.
Contest winners meet Real Madrid basketball star Tremmel Darden
Like Real Madrid, we believe technology and sport offer powerful tools for personal development. When you play sport or surf the Internet, you aim to have fun and learn. As in sports, the Net bans violence towards others. When you play sports, you are obliged to help all who are injured or have a disability. On the Internet, too, you need to help others .
Fair play is important, off and online. If you insult an opponent on the field, the referee would expel you. When you play a team you wear a uniform with a number and name. On the Internet you have to act the same without impersonating others or lying about your identity.
Real Madrid basketball star
Tremmel Darden
and Enrique Sánchez, Vice President of Real Madrid Foundation, chaired the award ceremony. Six children from eight to 13 years old received prizes for their presentations, which included videos, powerpoints and drawings, all promoting Internet sportsmanship. For prizes, they received Android Nexus tablets and Real Madrid’s shirts signed by players, including football superstars
Cristiano Ronaldo
and
Iker Casillas
.
Posted by Francisco Ruiz Anton, Public Policy Manager, Madrid
Awarding innovative work in data journalism
Thursday, March 6, 2014
For the past two years, we have supported the
Global Editors Network
(GEN) Data Journalism Awards. The third edition is now open to submissions on the
GEN website
until April 4. Work may be submitted for any media platform, but must be published or broadcast between April 10, 2013 and April 4, 2014. A total of eight prizes, worth a total of EUR16,000, will be awarded.
As journalism makes the exciting, if sometimes difficult, transition from off to online, technology is opening up new avenues for journalism. The emerging field of data journalism analyses numerical data and databases to make inferences and discoveries which enable journalists to produce news in ways that were difficult or impossible before the invention of the Internet and powerful data-processing.
Bertrand Pecquerie
, the GEN CEO, believes the use of data will, in particular, revolutionize investigative reporting.
Entries will be judged by an all-star jury of journalists, including
Wolfgang Blau
of The Guardian,
Simon Rogers
of Twitter, and
Giannina Segnini
from La Nación.
Paul Steiger
, the former editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal and founder of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
ProPublica
, will serve as president.
Winning teams will be invited to present their work at the
Global Editors Network Summit
in Barcelona on June 12, 2014. Steiger and Jaume Giro, CEO of the bank
la Caixa
, will preside at the ceremony, which will be held at the
Centre de Cultura Contemporània
de Barcelona.
Posted by Simon Morrison, Public Policy manager, London
Working with Spanish Publishers
Friday, February 14, 2014
The cafe in our Madrid office was full with guests, news publishers, members of the
Spanish Association of Publishers of Periodicals
(AEEPP) who had come to learn about how web tools could boost their businesses. Under a recently signed partnership, we are working designed to "increase visibility" of their publications online and seek sustainable business models in the digital world.
AEPP members attended a workshop at Google's Madrid offices
It's no secret that the news industry has been through a period of upheaval. As our chief economist Hal Varian noted last year in a
speech
at the Perugia Journalism Festival, while the Internet has made distribution much easier and cheaper, it has also increased the supply of news and competition for readers, challenging traditional business models. At the same time, media consultancy
Oliver & Ohlbaum
recently published a
study
showing that the net is powering the rise of exciting new voices and small players. YouTube stars are building fame online before securing a record deal or a film contract. Newshounds now discover, share, and comment on stories on platforms like Twitter and Facebook.
Many win-win ways exist for Google and publishers to join forces in the new digital universe. We drive traffic to publishers - ten billion clicks a month around the globe, offering publishers 100,000 business opportunities per minute. In 2013, our
AdSense
program paid out $9 billion a year to web publishers worldwide. Publishers remain free, with the addition of just a few lines of code, to pull out of Google web search and Google News. Publishers also remain free to determine whether to put their articles discovered through Google search behind a paywall.
We have set up a working group to discuss these new digital solutions with the AEEPP members in Spain. Our joint goal, in the association’s own words, is to find tools that new technologies offer publishers to "increase the monetization of their content, give greater visibility to their websites and strengthen their relationship with their own readers." During the recent workshop at our Madrid office, we demoed Webmaster tools, designed to attract readers. We analysed digital advertising solutions. And we explained our fight against spam.
The AEEPP represents Spain’s small and medium-size publishers. They like how all media are equally likely to appear in Google News. Today, more than 25,000 news organizations across the globe make their content available in Google News and other web search engines. We remain open to work with all publishers, big and small, local and national, to help them manage the transition to the new digital age.
Posted by Fran Ruiz Anton, Senior Public Policy Manager, Madrid
Participating in Safer Internet Day
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
In time for Safer Internet Day this week, we revamped our
Family Safety Centre
. The new version aims to be a one-stop shop that provides step-by-step instructions for using safety tools built into Google products. We attempt to answer questions about specific topics that are most concerning to parents, such as accessing inappropriate content and meeting strangers online.
Throughout Europe, we promoted Safer Internet Day on Google home pages and our teams got into action. In Spain, for example, we participated in a presentation with local partner Protegeles bringing together kids, parents and teachers. In Israel, the Children’s Rights Committee at the Parliament met with our
Web-Rangers
, to discuss how teenagers can promote online safety.
Here in Brussels, we hosted for lunch in our office with the winners of the European Award for
Best Content for Kids
, a European wide contest highlighting content allowing young people online opportunities to learn, play, discover and invent. Winning entries such as the from the UK (see below) touch important topics like the issue of
cyberbullying
.
European Commissioner Neelie Kroes
received the winners later in the day at the Commission’s Berlaymont headquarters and posted its “Let’s Create a Better Internet Together” video on YouTube.
The Internet and social platforms offer tremendous opportunities for youth: self-expression, civil engagement, and collaboration with communities. At the same time, like any tool, the web can be abused. We are proud to build powerful safety tools into our products, ranging from SafeSearch to Safety Mode. In the end, its up to all of us to stand up for for a safe and secure internet, not just on the annual Safer Internet day - but every day!
Posted by Marco Pancini, Senior Policy Manager, Brussels
Inviting you to take a Romanesque journey
Monday, February 3, 2014
More than a millenium before the birth of the European Union, a style of architecture and art spread across the continent. It was called Romanesque and it emerged almost simultaneously in Spain, France, Italy, and Germany with sufficient unity to be considered Europe’s first common international art style.
Celebrating this achievement, our Cultural Institute just has launched launch a new, virtual exhibition, called
“Origins of Romanesque: the Birth of Europe.”
Curated by the
Santa María la Real Foundation
, it presents 26 iconic expressions of Romanesque beauty, explaining their social, political and cultural context. More than 100 guests attended the launch event in Madrid, featuring the president of the Foundation, José María Perez Peridis and the President of National Heritage as speakers.
Monestaries and abbeys led the way in spreading Romanesque constructions. In Spain, Romanesque cathedrals, churches, monasteries, cloisters and chapels mark the famed
Camino de Santiago pilgrammage
route.
Elsewhere in Europe, abbeys in
Fulda,
Lorsch
,
St. Gallen
and
Bobbio
arose in the 11th century and became beacons for the new style, as did Europe’s first universities, beginning with
Bologna
in 1088.
Beside exploring Romanesque buildings, the new online exhibition includes drawings, photographs, films and video about Romanesque Europe.
We hope this present exhibition is only the first of a series, exploring other a series of exhibitions on life and art in Europe from Roman to modern times. Our goal is help everyone learn about and enjoy the beauties from the past.
Posted by Barbara Navarro, Director of Institutional Relations and Public Affairs Google
Ski with Street View
Friday, December 13, 2013
Europe’s ski season is moving into high gear, making it a perfect moment for us to help you explore some of the continent’s best resorts and runs. We’ve taken our
Street View snowmobile
to the slopes and have launched new imagery of some great pistes in Italy, France, Andorra and Spain.
Italy:
From the western border between Italy and France in
La Thuile
to
Siusi
,
Pusteria
and
Kronplatz
in the eastern Dolomite Stations south of Austria, we are bringing online a total of eight Italian ski resorts. Take a look where the pros will head down the pistes at
Bormio,
which hosts a
World Cup stop
on December 29.
View Larger Map
France:
Val Thorens is one of the highest stations in Europe, while
Les Gets
opens up to the 600 kilometers of slopes on the
Portes du Soleil
.
View Larger Map
Spain:
The Pyrenees boasts some great skiing and we feature
Estació de Esqui de Masella
.
View Larger Map
Andorra:
The small state of Andorra is home to a lot of skiing. We are bringing online two Alpine resorts
Estació Esquí de Grandvalira
and
Estació Esquí de Vallnord
. Together they cover more than 300 kilometers of slopes. You can also explore Nordic skiing facilities at
Estació Esquí de fons de Naturlandia
.
Check out the slopes online, pick up your skis and head to the mountains.
Posted by Ulf Spitzer, Street View Program Manager, Zurich
Boosting Tourism in Southern Europe
Thursday, December 12, 2013
If Southern Europe is to recover from the euro crisis, the region will need to boost its traditionally strong tourism industry - and one of the best ways to sell its sun, beauty, and history is through the Internet. This is the conclusion of new
Oxford Economics
study titled
“The Impact of Online Content on European Tourism.”
The research, supported by us, found that Greece, Italy and Spain could improve their performance with online bookings. On average, some 49 percent of hotel bookings in the European Union,are made on the web. In Greece, by contrast, online bookings account for only 10 percent. In Spain, it is 26 percent, and in Italy, 43 percent.
In addition, the three countries enjoy great opportunities to market their rich cultural heritage. Culture-related searches account for 45 percent of all tourism-related searches on Greece, 31 percent for Italy, and 44 percent for Spain. Greek Italian and Spanish museums, art galleries, historical sites and cultural events will be able to move more traffic online.
If full advantage is taken of the Internet, Oxford calculates that Greece could see a 20 percent expansion in its tourism business, boosting GDP growth by an astounding 3.2 percent. Italy’s GDP would increase by 1 percent, and Spain’s by 0.5 percent. Some 50,000 jobs would be created in Spain, 100,000 in Greece, and 250,000 in Italy.
Specific recommendations to achieve these goals include:
Encourage tourist businesses to build websites in multiple languages across multiple online platforms - travel apps, travel apps, search, sales portals, travel reviews, travel guides.
Update the content frequently - and given the significant role that culture plays in tourism in Europe, pay special attention to online cultural content.
Motivate government agencies to work with the private sector to provide complementary destination and cultural online content.
Use social media and encourage feedback from customers. This will allow businesses to build relationships with their customers as well as improve service offerings over time.
Fortunately, we’re seeing signs that the Mediterranean tourist industry is embracing these opportunities. At the report's recent launch in Athens, the president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises,
Andreas Andreadis
, pointed to the
Discovergreece.com
website that serves as a platform for online reservations. Tourism Minister
Olga Kefalogianni
said the
VisitGreece.gr
had attracted 7.3 million unique visitors and reported that her Ministry has launched a web-based communication campaign to promote Greece. Carlos Romero, from Spain’s government tourist innovation agency
Seggitur
, spoke of the success of
spainisculture.com
.
Let’s hope that the research will encourage additional investments in online tourism.
Posted by Dionisis Kolokotsas, Public Policy Manager, Athens
Celebrating Spain’s Influence on the United States
Monday, November 25, 2013
Spaniards were among the first explorers to reach the coasts of the future United States, leaving a deep legacy on our culture, cuisine and customs, from Florida to California. We’re celebrating this influence this year in
seven exciting new exhibitions
on our
Cultural Institute platform
.
Spain’s
Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo
and
Felipe, Prince of Asturias
, along with about 80 Spanish businessmen and officials, recently visited the Google headquarters in California to launch the exhibitions with our CEO Larry Page. The exhibits are timed to commemorate the the 500th anniversary of
Juan Ponce de León
landing in Florida and Vasco Nuñez de Balboa discovery of the the Pacific Ocean as well as the 300th anniversary of the birthday of
Father Junipero Serra
, who founded the first Catholic missions in California.
The exhibitions, curated by a historian appointed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, tell the story of how the Spanish explorers arrived in America and what they did there in more than three centuries. In addition to Florida, Spaniards settled the entire U.S. Southwest: Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. They built the region’s first cities and their missions, fortifications, and ranches left an indeliable mark on architecture. They build important roads. They brought new livestock and agricultural techniques. They even played a role in winning independence from the British.
Explore the Spanish legacy in the United States, and enjoy an example of how heritage and the Internet, old and new, can be combined to increase our understanding.
Posted by Barbara Navarro, Director, Public Policy, Madrid
Seeing Spain through English eyes
Monday, October 21, 2013
Over the past few centuries, Span has exerted a powerful fascination on foreigners, particularly English-speaking ones. Visitors from the United Kingdom, as well as the U.S., Canada, Australia and Ireland, left powerful descriptions of their travels to this exotic land. Now, with our help, the
Cervantes Institute
has created an
online exhibition
based on accounts by foreign travelers collected in more than 240 books on Spain written between 1750 and 1950. More than five hundred images and engravings have been put online.
The Institute, the Spanish government’s equivalent to France’s
Alliance Francaise
and Germany’s
Goethe Institute
, is dedicated to promoting the Spanish language and culture. Some 40 of the exhibition's books, the out of copyright works, already had been scanned in our
Book Project
. Others were found in the collection of the Institute’s London branch. Institute curators have prepared a detailed analysis of the texts and organized them by subject, ranging from the role women to bull-fights
The exhibition explodes many stereotypes about Spain. Most foreign observers found them hard-working, seeing the much-noted afternoon siesta as hiding the real truth. “This is not a fair ground for the charge of laziness, so often urged against the natives of the south of Europe, for the heat at this hour will induce drowsiness even in the active and stirring Englishman, especially when not inured to the relaxing climate,” wrote
George Dennis
in
A Summer in Andalusia
, published in 1839. “The Spanish working man is really a most sober, hard-working being, not much given to dancing and not at all to drinking. They are exceptionally clever and sharp, and learn any new trade with great facility,” concurred Louis Higgin, in 1902 in his
Spanish life In town and country
.
More than 100 people showed up for the exhibition’s launch this month. The Cervantes’s Institute’s General Secretary discussed the project via Google Hangout with the the director of Cervantes Institute in London. The exhibition demonstrates how the Internet helps allow access to previously overlooked or ignored documents. Many of the books, stocked in dusty library shelves, received few readers. Today, anyone, anywhere in the world is able, with a click of their computer, to find and enjoy them.
Posted by Esperanza Ibanez, Public Policy Manager, Spain
Get an All Access music pass on Google Play
Thursday, August 8, 2013
With millions upon millions of songs out there, it can be a daunting task to figure out what to choose. Sometimes you just want to sit back, press play and hear something new. Starting today, you can do just that.
All Access
, our new monthly music subscription service in Google Play, is now available in Austria, Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain and the UK.
All Access provides an unlimited pass to a huge library of music on all your devices — from all the major record companies, as well as top local and independent labels.
The new service lets you create an ad-free, interactive radio station from any song or artist. You can add, remove or re-order your station and see what’s coming next. Or browse recommendations from our expert music team and explore songs by genre. The “Listen Now” tab puts artists and radio stations we think you’ll like front and center allowing you to start listening the minute you open your library.
When millions of songs just aren’t enough, Google Play Music lets you combine our collection with your own collection. You can store 20,000 songs for free online, and listen to them alongside the All Access catalogue on any Android device, or via the web at
play.google.com
. You can even ‘pin’ specific albums and playlists songs so they’re available offline.
Try it today for free for the first month and -- as a special introductory offer -- pay only EUR7.99 each month after that. Regular pricing for those who sign up after September 15 will be EUR9.99 a month, with a 30-day free trial.
With today’s launch, Google Play moves one step closer to your ultimate digital entertainment destination, where you can find, enjoy and share your favourite apps, games, books, movies, magazines, TV shows and music on your Android phone or tablet. Go ahead and start discovering a whole new world of music.
Posted by Paul Joyce, product manager for Google Play Music
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