Here Maps today said it is dropping support for Windows 10 and Windows Phone. The company plans to pull all Here-branded mobile apps from the Windows Store by March 29, as the apps will cease working on handsets by June 30.
“We made the Here apps compatible with Windows 10 by using a workaround that will no longer be effective after June 30,” explained Here’s Pino Bonetti in a blog post. “To continue offering the Here apps for Windows 10 would require us to redevelop the apps from the ground up, a scenario that led to the business decision to remove our apps from the Windows 10 store.”
This means Here Maps will no longer be available to Windows 10-based smartphones, tablets, and PCs; instead, Here says Windows 10 devices will need to use the Microsoft Maps product.
Microsoft Maps relies on Here’s mapping data, but doesn’t have the robust feature set of the Here Maps apps. Phones running Windows Phone 8/8.1 will still be able to use Here Maps on their devices, but Here will limit any future updates to critical bug fixes.
Here Maps, Nokia’s former mapping division, is now owned by a consortium of German auto makers including Audi, BMW, and Daimler. The consortium plans to focus efforts on other platforms, including Android and iOS
