Google is slowly but surely moving away from Microsoft, which would most definitely affect many Windows and Windows Phone users who rely on certain Google services to get by during their daily activity. Per reports, Google no longer supports ActiveSync on Windows and Windows Phone.

Just recently, Google made it clear that it will not be creating applications for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 because at the moment, not many users seem to be gravitating towards what Microsoft is offering. What's more, soon Google Calendar and Gmail will be unusable on Windows-based platforms and users will either have to switch to Microsoft Outlook, or use Gmail via their web browser.

According to Google, the company will end its support for ActiveSync by switching to open protocols that are not supported on Windows and Windows Phone. This move means Gmail IMAP and Google Calendar will not work on new Google accounts, which is a major blow for Microsoft.

"Google Sync was designed to allow access to Google Mail, Calendar and Contacts via the Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync® protocol. With the recent launch of CardDAV, Google now offers similar access via IMAP, CalDAV and CardDAV, making it possible to build a seamless sync experience using open protocols. Starting January 30, 2013, consumers won't be able to set up new devices using Google Sync; however, existing Google Sync connections will continue to function. Google Sync will continue to be fully supported for Google Apps for Business, Government and Education. Users of those products are unaffected by this announcement," noted Google's blog post.

Existing Windows Phone and Windows users won't be affected, but anyone who purchases a new device will have to bear with the new changes.