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Google Inc. says it has added more personalization facets to Google News, a news feature struggling to match the soaring popularity of competitive offerings.
As of Tuesday, Google News automatically lists recommended reading. The news stories are chosen based on Googles interpretation of someones news preferences based on their previous sessions.
Theres also a listing of the top news stories of the moment, which has become standard fare at other online news outlets.
Before seeing any of the new features, Google users must first sign up for the companys free Personalized Search service.
The changes are to help Google News latch onto the growing numbers of general interest and professional consumers of online news products.
While still predominantly an Internet search engine, Google News is an early example of how Google is now a one-stop shop for scads of free, advertising-supported Internet services.
By expanding, the firm is taking on other Internet portals, chief among them Yahoo Inc., the Webs most popular destination, and America Online.
Yahoo News and AOL News are usually among the elite news sites, rivaling even segment leader MSNBC. Meanwhile, Google News falls well below the top tier.
Personalizing news is one way that Google and other Internet interests have been turning the traditional newspaper and TV news industry on its collective head.
News consumers no longer need to wait to get their news. Instead, the Internet makes it possible to take more control over when and how to get information about current events.