Google unveils a plan to make the open web faster

Facing threats from Apple and Facebook, Google is teaming up with web publishers to cut down page load times on smartphones. 

 “Accelerated Mobile Pages,” or AMP, is an open framework for building lightweight webpages, optimized for mobile devices. The move is a direct answer to rival initiatives such as Apple News and Facebook Instant Articles, both of which offer fast-loading articles by cutting out cruft. 

AMP is also a response to the rise of ad blockers, especially on iOS, where Apple recently started allowing ad-blocking in Safari. It’s no secret that unblocked pages demand significantly more bandwidth and take much longer to load. Google’s hope is that fewer people will install ad blockers if pages load quickly and run smoothly, and says it will allow ad formats “that don’t detract from the user experience.”

 Google is also partnering with tech companies such as Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, so perhaps we’ll eventually see AMP pages when opening links in their respective apps. The program is just in a preview phase for now, with BuzzFeed, Vox, and the Washington Post among the initial partners.