San Francisco, May 2 (IANS): Major apps including Google Maps, Amazon, eBay appear to have ditched their Apple Watch apps and have quietly removed support for watchOS in updates submitted to the App Store.

"Google confirmed it had removed support from Google Maps but suggested that move might be temporary," technology website cnet.com reported on Tuesday.

The removal was not mentioned in the release notes, and Google has not indicated whether it will reinstate support for watchOS.

Amazon and eBay, both of which previously included Apple Watch support in their iOS apps have also removed their apps. Both were last updated in April.

"It's unclear why the companies decided to remove support for their apps on the Apple Watch, or whether Apple had a role in their decision," the report noted.

Apple launched its smartwatch two years ago, but the early software version was limited and apps initially were extensions of their iPhone apps.

Apple released watchOS 3 software in 2016 that allowed app developers to make standalone apps for the Apple Watch.