Google: Easier Way to Link & Share Actual URL on AMP Pages Coming

If you have tried to share a URL from an AMP article you have read in Google, chances are you have noticed that the link copied is a www.google.com/amp/ URL and not the actual URL of the source page.  It is frustrating for many because it can obscure the actual site when the link is shared, and also some people end up linking to the Google URL, meaning some sites are potentially losing link value.

Google has confirmed they are working on a changes that would see an easy link or access to the canonical page URL and the canonical URL for sharing as well.

Working on a direct path from AMP pages loaded from Google Search to the canonical & sharing will use the canonical if technically possible.

— Malte Ubl (@cramforce) November 4, 2016

I frequently share URLs that Google Now surfaces in my search app, but they only have the Google AMP URL, and even the “copy URL” copies the Google AMP URL and not the link to the actual page.  Some places where you share articles – on Twitter for example – it sources the correct destination site for the excerpt and image, while others it doesn’t.  Then there is the issue of hackers hiding phishing links in AMP URLs.

They are also making changes to remove the top bar that also displays on AMP – on Android it currently scrolls away and changes are underway for the same in Safari.

Also, that top bar. It already scrolls away on Android and it will soon on Safari. Just working out some jank issues there.

— Malte Ubl (@cramforce) November 4, 2016

How soon the linking and sharing URL changes will come is anyone’s guess, but it is currently being worked on which is great news for both site owners and those that use AMP.

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Jennifer Slegg

Founder & Editor at The SEM Post

Jennifer Slegg is a longtime speaker and expert in search engine marketing, working in the industry for almost 20 years. When she isn't sitting at her desk writing and working, she can be found grabbing a latte at her local Starbucks or planning her next trip to Disneyland. She regularly speaks at Pubcon, SMX, State of Search, Brighton SEO and more, and has been presenting at conferences for over a decade.

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