San Francisco, Jun 1 (IANS): Tech giant Amazon is shutting down support for its Cloud Cam security camera and offering owners a free Blink Mini to replace it.

Cloud Cam owners will be able to use their cameras and download video until December 2 of this year, after which all recordings will be deleted and the hardware will no longer function, reports The Verge, which has obtained a copy of an email sent to customers announcing the change.

Customers with the Cloud Cam Key Edition will also lose the ability to connect to smart locks, although they can get a free fourth-generation Echo to replace the functionality.

"As the number of Alexa smart home devices continues to grow, we are focusing efforts on Ring, Blink, and other technologies that make your home smarter and simplify your everyday routines. Therefore, we have decided to no longer continue support for Amazon Cloud Cam and its companion apps," Amazon said in its email, which was also posted on Reddit.

In a statement to MacRumors, Amazon added "we will continue to offer innovative smart home security solutions for our customers through Amazon's Ring and Blink brands". It also specified that it will give Blink Mini cameras to users who are "still actively using their Cloud Cam".

Amazon smart home spokesperson Jocelyn Shaw clarified to The Verge that Cloud Cam customers who have been active in the past six months will be eligible for replacement of hardware, and customers will get one Blink Mini for each active Cloud Cam they were using, or one Blink Mini and Echo for each Cloud Cam Key Edition.