Samsung News Shutting Down December 21: How to Switch to Discover
Samsung News is shutting down on December 21, 2026, at 00:00 UTC, ending the built-in news feed that Galaxy phones and tablets have carried in one form or another since 2017. Samsung has started notifying users in India and South Korea, and owners elsewhere are likely to see the same notice in the coming weeks.
The shutdown was first spotted by SamMobile, which published the in-app notice Samsung began showing on October 26. Samsung did not give a reason for the decision.
Why Samsung News Is Shutting Down and What Stops Working
According to the notice, the Samsung News widget will no longer receive content updates once the service ends, and Samsung recommends removing it from the home screen. The news media page that opens when you swipe right from the leftmost home screen will also stop working.
Samsung also says it will delete personal information collected through the service, including profiles and personalization settings, “without undue delay” after the shutdown. Some data may be kept for longer only where local laws require it.
The app has been renamed several times. It started as Bixby Home in 2017, became Samsung Daily in 2019, turned into Samsung Free in 2020 and was relaunched as Samsung News in April 2023. Each version tried to give Samsung its own news and content feed next to Google’s, but none of them became a clear alternative to Google’s personalized feed.
How to Switch From Samsung News to Google Discover
Samsung has not announced a direct replacement, so Google Discover is the obvious option for anyone who wants a news feed on the home screen. Galaxy devices already let you choose between the two services, as Samsung explains on its US support page. Depending on your One UI version, you can switch in one of these ways:
- Pinch the home screen, swipe right to the leftmost page and tap Google Discover.
- Pinch the home screen, swipe right, open Settings, turn on “Add media page to Home screen” and select Google Discover.
- Open Settings, go to Home screen, turn on “Add media page to Home screen” and select Google Discover.
To remove the old widget, press and hold it and choose Remove. If you prefer no feed at all, the same media page setting lets you turn both services off.
What It Means for Galaxy Owners
For most users, the change will barely be noticeable, since many Galaxy owners already use Google Discover or have the feed turned off. Samsung’s recent phones put more weight on long software support instead, as seen with the Galaxy A08 and its six years of updates.
Samsung’s next big software step is One UI built on Android 17, and our Android 17 release date guide covers when Galaxy phones are expected to get it. If you are reviewing what runs on your phone before the shutdown, it is also worth reading about the recent Android “SMS of death” bug.
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