Google is shutting down Picasa in favour of Photos; plans to focus on a single photo service

New Delhi: Google said it will be shuttering Picasa to shift its focus to the new Google Photos service launched less than a year ago.

"We believe we can create a much better experience by focusing on one service that provides more functionality and works across mobile and desktop, rather than divide our efforts across two different products," Google Photos chief Anil Sabharwal said in a blog post.

Pictures or videos in Picasa online albums will be automatically available in people's Google Photos accounts, according to Sabharwal.

Those wishing not to shift to the new service will still be able to view, download or delete photos in Picasa albums, but the software won't be updated and adding images won't be an option.

"One thing to make clear is that none of this is happening today - if you have a Picasa Web Album you can keep using it as normal. We'll start rolling out these changes on May 1, 2016," said Sabharwal.

Also, as of March 15, 2016, Google will no longer be supporting the Picasa desktop application. For those who have already downloaded this - or choose to do so before this date - it will continue to work as it does today, but the company will not be developing it further, and there will be no future updates.

"We apologize for any inconvenience this transition causes, but we want to assure you that we are doing this with the aim of providing the best photos experience possible," Sabharwal said.

(With inputs from AFP Relaxnews)