Google has made another acquisition with its purchase of Bitspin - a developer known primarily for the Android alarm clock app, Timely.
In a terse statement posted on Zurich-based Bitspin's Web site at the weekend, the app-maker said: "We're thrilled to announce that Bitspin is joining Google, where we'll continue to do what we love: building great products that are delightful to use."
While further details of the deal between Google and Bitspin have not been revealed, Bitspin says its popular app will continue to work as it always has.
However, whereas the premium Timely Alarm Clock app - which contained no advertisements - came at a price, it is now free of charge from the Google Play Store. This move has drawn some criticism from users who purchased the app prior to the deal.
Bumped off
Meanwhile, another of Google's recent acquisitions, Bump - the near-field communication app that allows users to share data by "bumping" their smartphones together - will be discontinued as of the end of the month.
Bump Technologies CEO and co-founder David Lieb said in a statement last week that both Bump and another of the developer's apps, Flock, would be discontinued as the team focuses on new projects within Google. Flock is a photo-sharing app that finds photos taken together by associated smartphone users and collates them in a shared album.
"Back in September, we announced that the Bump team was joining Google to continue our work of helping people share and interact with one another using mobile devices.
"We are now deeply focused on our new projects within Google, and we've decided to discontinue Bump and Flock. On 31 January 2014, Bump and Flock will be removed from the App Store and Google Play. After this date, neither app will work, and all user data will be deleted," said Lieb.
He says the team has, however, taken care to ensure users retain any data they have stored in Bump and Flock. "At any point in the next 30 days, simply open either app and follow the instructions for exporting your data. You'll then receive an e-mail with a link containing all of your data (photos, videos, contacts, etc) from Bump or Flock."
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