Google said in a support document that Cloud Print, its cloud-based printing solution, is being retired at the end of next year. The service allowed people to connect printers to their Google account, allowing print jobs to be sent over the web easily instead of dealing with drivers and other time-consuming utilities. Sadly, Cloud Print will be laid to retire next year, with the service completely shutting down in January 2021.
Cloud Print was launched in 2010 in an effort to make it easier to print documents from any Cloud Print-enabled app, like Google Docs, to a network-connected, Cloud-aware printer. However, Google did note that the feature has technically been in beta since 2010.
Google remarks that Chrome OS’ native printing solutions have been vastly enhanced since Cloud Print launched in 2010, and also promises that native printing in Chrome OS will continue to get more features over time.
Chrome OS already handles some administrative tasks for printers that use the Common Unix Printing System (CUPS). Google promises to expand administrative options through the end of the year and add more robust support for external print servers and other security policy administration in 2020. Since Chrome OS and its apps rely entirely on Cloud Print, Google will also be developing APIs for third-party developers to handle printing tasks.
