In a surprising announcement on Thursday, Google announced that it is discontinuing its Pixel Pass subscription service, which was designed to combine smartphones and services in a single monthly package.
Pixel Pass was launched in 2018 as a way for Google to offer a more simplified smartphone experience, with the phone and services bundled together. It was the first time Google had offered a service of this kind, and the goal was to provide users with an affordable way to keep up with the newest phones and services.
However, it appears that not enough people signed up for the service, which may have played a role in the decision to discontinue it. Google stated that it had seen “low user engagement” and wanted to direct its resources elsewhere.
For those who had already signed up for Pixel Pass, they will be able to keep their current subscription until the end of the month. After that, they will no longer have access to the service.
The decision to discontinue Pixel Pass comes as Google doubles down on its focus on cloud services. It recently announced a new program that will allow consumers to store and access their photos and videos in the cloud, and the company is also focusing more on its consumer-facing apps, such as Google Duo and Google Keep.
But while Pixel Pass is gone, it won’t be forgotten anytime soon. It was Google’s first attempt at bundling phones and services together, and it may have opened the door to other companies experimenting with similar models in the future. For now, however, it’s the end of the line for this particular subscription service.
