In an article published last week by Barron’s, a Google spokesperson told the publication that the program was a “small experiment,” and did not indicate how long it would last.
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for HouseCanary told HousingWire that all reports that the experiment had been stopped were untrue.
“Reports that the Google project has been ‘closed’ are incorrect,” the spokesperson wrote. “HouseCanary continues to engage with Google in a controlled experiment in the US. As a member of the MLSs we partner with, we work directly with those organizations and honor their requests.”
Industry sources told HousingWire that the removal of these embedded listings came after several MLSs took action to block the use of their listing data, preventing Google from continuing and expanding the experimental program in many markets.
In California specifically, sources told HousingWire that California Regional MLS (CRMLS) terminated its data license agreement with HouseCanary last Tuesday after HouseCanary allegedly breached CRMLS’ license agreement.
CRMLS declined to comment on the termination of HouseCanary’s licensing agreement or the removal of embedded listings in mobile search results in markets such as Los Angeles and San Francisco.
HouseCanary also declined to comment on what happened with CRMLS.
In response to the comments on the Google integration, HouseCanary posted on LinkedIn in December that before embarking on its “experiment” with Google, it contacted every MLS in the affected regions.
“We work directly with these MLSs and we have active, ongoing communication with them throughout the test. If an MLS has questions or concerns, we will address them directly and quickly,” the release said. “The goal is simple: improve the way consumers discover listings while staying aligned with the rules and expectations of the MLS community.”
This wasn’t the first time Google tested a real estate-related product, and since none of the tech giant’s previous attempts evolved into anything serious, this outcome may not come as a surprise to many.
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