Google says it’ll begin phasing out Chrome-linked applications on Mac, Windows, and Linux, a move that’s only going to affect a tiny percentage of Chrome users. It’ll remove support for the apps over the next 24 months due to their lack of usage and because it wants developers to focus entirely on regular extensions.
The Chrome apps are dependent on Google’s browser, but they can function in separate windows, allowing them to feel like independent pieces of software.
Google’s slow phase-out plan includes only letting new Chrome apps run on Chrome OS by the end of this year. Then, by mid-2017, the app store will stop showing Chrome apps for Windows, Mac, and Linux users. The apps will stop functioning entirely in early 2018.
Only around 1% of Chrome users on those platforms use the apps.
