Google and its six products – Picnik, Sky Map, Urchin, Needlebase, Google Message Continuity, and the Social Graph API are all headed for the deadpool, open source or absorption into more central divisions. The company made the announcement through the Google official blog.
Needlebase: Google acquired the product from ITA Software, a data management platform. The company is retiring the platform and is being evaluated for integration into Google’s other data-related initiatives.
Google Sky Map: The app was created to show off the amazing capabilities of the sensors in the first-generation Android phones and offer a window into the sky. The company is now turning the app into open-sourcing Sky Map and are collaborating with Carnegie Mellon University as a series of projects.
Google Message Community (GMC): Google launched an email disaster recovery product for enterprise customers that use Google’s cloud to back up emails originally sent or received in an on-premise. The company is gearing up to focus more on Google Apps and end support for GMC. Those who are in the contract can use GMC for the duration.
Picnik: An online photo editor company acquired in 2010 is in the process of retiring the service on April 19 in context with allowing the Picnik team to continue create photo-editing magic across other Google products.
Urchin: Google acquired, Urchin in 2005, whose online web analytics product became the Google Analytics foundation, helping all sizes businesses to measure their websites and online marketing. The company is ending the product for ever. Software license after March 2012 will no longer be available.
Social Graph API: The API results in making information about the public connections between people on the website available for developers. It will be fully retired on April 20 this year.
