Google axes Sync service in seasonal product cull

Google has announced cuts to its Sync brand of services as part of a "cleaning" effort to drop its seldom-used platforms.

The company said that it would be discontinuing the Google Sync, Calendar Sync, Sync for Nokia S60 and SyncML services effective 30 January 2013. The company is recommending that users migrate to the CardDAV platform.

"Last January, we renewed our resolution to focus on creating beautiful, useful products that improve millions of people’s lives every day," Google vice president of engineering Venkat Panchapakesan said in a blog post announcing the moves.

"To make the most impact, we need to make some difficult decisions."

Also being dropped in the cleaning were the Calendar Labs Smart Rescheduler tool and the Issue Tracker Data API developer tool.

Google also said that it would be discontinuing the Punchd retail platform which allowed users to keep customer loyalty cards on their Android and iOS smartphones. The company will continue to offer the platform until 7 June, 2013, at which point users and retail clients would no longer be able to access the service.

The cuts are part of a series of seasonal "cleaning" efforts by Google in which the company cuts its seldom-used applications and services in order to focus on new platforms and more promising ventures.

Past cuts have included the iGoogle brand and the Google Business Video service.