UPDATED 14:18 EDT / APRIL 20 2012

NEWS

Google to Drop Sync Support for Blackberry

Can you smell blood in the water? It looks like Google does. In a blog post released today, the company announced that on June 1, it will drop support for Google Sync for BlackBerry.

The news came as part of what Google calls a “spring cleaning.” It looks more like a power play. Blackberry market share is dropping. Stopping support means that customers who use the syncing service will have to find other ways to access Google. While e-mail will presumably still be available via the Blackberry’s browser, it would obviously be easier to just buy an Android phone.

Google Sync is a BlackBerry client with two-way synchronization. It downloads contacts and Google Calendar events onto a BlackBerry, and uploads contacts and Calendar events from your BlackBerry. It integrates into BlackBerry’s built-in calendar and synchronizes the address book with the “My Contacts” group in your Google Contacts.

Google Sync for BlackBerry users are encouraged to switch to BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) or the Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server going forward.

This raises questions for the CIO. Even with enterprise support, Google’s move shows Blackberry’s drop in demand. This poses a problem as more business seek ways to maximize mobile apps for business purposes. Additionally, it signals to mobile solutions providers that moving even further away from Blackberry is in all likelihood a very smart idea.

 


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