Google Chrome is developed based on the open-source engine Chromium, even though it powers other major browsers like Opera and Microsoft Edge. The fact that everyone shares the same code base has great advantages over basic functions, considering that any change in Chromium itself ends up affecting everyone, in addition to being compatible with extensions.
However, this compatibility can also end up causing problems. On the official Chromium blog, Google has just announced that it will block access to Chrome APIs from third-party browsers based on the engine. This means features like Chrome Sync, which synchronizes data between browsers logged on with the same Google Account and Click to Call, which allows calls to be made from web pages.
The measure is not punitive, however, and will not exclude data already synchronized from users who have used the functions. The only change is that, as of March 15, it will no longer be possible to synchronize new data in browsers other than Chrome. The search giant also encourages users who have data synchronized with other browsers to access the account’s ” My Activity ” page to manage the content or download it through Google Takeout.
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As the XDA Developers website explains, the block does not come as a surprise. Chrome Sync was never an integral part of Chromium-based browsers, which even warned users about it. As expected, the measure also ends up being a way for Google to attract users to Chrome, with the feature as a differentiator.
