A common complaint with the Windows phone platform is that it doesn’t have the same selection of high-profile apps as its Android and iOS competition. And today, it’s been revealed that Windows phones are losing a big app that they’ve had for a while now.
HERE has announced that it will be pulling its apps from the Windows 10 store on March 29, and that once June 30 rolls around, they’ll stop working altogether. HERE explains that it made its apps compatible with Windows 10 using a workaround that’ll no longer be effective after June 30. To keep them working after that date, HERE would have to totally rewrite its apps, and so it’s made the decision to pull them from the store instead.
HERE also notes that the HERE apps for Windows Phone 8 will continue to work because they’re deeply integrated into the OS. However, those apps will not receive any more new features, and HERE does not plan to develop those maps any further. The only updates that HERE apps for Windows Phone 8 will receive are for critical bug fixes.
Windows 10 Mobile users won’t be without a mapping app when HERE leaves, as they’ve got a preinstalled Windows Maps app that actually uses assets acquired from HERE in 2014. That said, Windows phone fans haven’t had a ton of news to get excited about lately, and today’s news is another disappointing blow to the platform. If you’re on Windows 10 Mobile and using HERE for your mapping needs, you may want to start getting used to Windows Maps or another mapping app.