Enlarge / Display by artist the current reputation of Google.
Google has finally released a solution for people with “legacy” Google GSuite accounts. After initially threatening to close free GSuite accounts if users did not start paying for the service, Google withdrew completely. Once users go through some registration loops, Google will allow their ~ 16-year-old accounts to continue to operate. You will even be able to save your email address.
The saga so far, if you haven’t watched, is that Google has a user account service with user domains, which is now called “Google Workspace” and was previously called “G Suite” and “Google Apps”. The service is primarily a normal Google Account, which allows you to use email that ends with your personalized domain name instead of “@ gmail.com”. Today, this service is business-oriented and costs money every month, but this has not always been the case. From 2006 to 2012, Google accounts with custom domains were free and were even offered to families as a maniacal way to have an online identity on Google.
In January, some Google bean counters apparently noticed that this small group of longtime users was technically receiving paid service for free, and decided it was unacceptable. Google released a statement in January declaring these people “Legacy GSuite users” and essentially telling them, “Pay or lose your account.” These users signed up for Google’s free service and stored it for 16 years, and there was no indication that it would ever be charged. Google is holding this decade plus user data hostage by telling users to start paying business fees for Workspace or face account closures.
A week later, after the inevitable public outcry, Google backed down somewhat and said it vaguely would eventually provide “an opportunity for you to move your paid non-Google Workspace content and most of your data to a free option.” To be told that you will be able to keep “most of your data” that you have accumulated over 16 years is a rather alarming statement. The only feature of Google in January was that “this new option will not include first-class features such as personalized email”, so you’ll need to stop hosting your email on Google and you’ll probably need to go through some wild Google Account conversion. . He then left these users anxiously swaying in the wind, without further detail, for six months.
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How to save your free GSuite account
In May, Google finally told these users what would happen to their accounts. The new support page says, “For individuals and families who use your account for non-commercial purposes, you can continue to use the legacy free edition of G Suite and opt out of the Google Workspace transition.” The link is here or in your GSuite admin panel. You will need to confirm that your GSuite account is for personal use, not business, as businesses are still expected to pay for Workspace. If you’ve already obeyed Google’s will and started paying for Workspace because of the January announcement, Google says you need to contact support.
Zoom in / This bottom button “Personal Use” is what you want.
Lee Hutchinson
The biggest news from this latest announcement is that Google has decided not to take away personalized email from people. A second support page says, “You can continue to use your custom domain with Gmail, keep access to free Google services like Google Drive and Google Meet, and save your purchases and data.” changes to your account, provided you click the ‘self-transition’ screen before the deadline.
The cancellation deadline, which has changed several times now, is June 27, 2022. If you do not complete this cancellation by June 27, you will be automatically charged for Workspace. If you do not have a card and do not cancel, your account will be suspended on August 1 and will be closed.
Automatic subscription and charging, without the explicit consent of the user, is one of the wildest parts of this story. If you don’t follow the technology news scene closely, there’s a good chance you won’t know it’s coming, and you’ll either be charged suddenly without your consent, or you’ll find that your Google Account has suddenly stopped working.
For a company whose main business pillar is convincing consumers to store huge amounts of data, a game like this is a strange solution. At least he came to a reasonable conclusion.
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