Google is bringing good news to users of its free edition of the G Suite, after announcing last week that they should upgrade to a paid Workspace account from July.
Google’s decision to force the switch to Workspace angered non-professional users who had created a free G Suite account more than 10 years ago.
While Google hasn’t offered the free edition of the G Suite to new customers since December 2012, it has kept the service alive. But, last week, it informed users that this edition would cease on 1er July 2022 and that they would have until 1er May to choose another paid Workspace account. The free G Suite legacy edition allowed users to have a Google email address ending with their own website’s domain rather than “@gmail.com”.
Google makes no promises
Ars Technica explains that Google could offer a reprieve to some affected users, mainly if they do not use it for professional purposes.
One problem is that the Google Takeout option to export data as local files does not allow affected users to export paid content from Google Play or YouTube. But the main problem is that these free edition users have to pay at least $6 per user per month for the Workspace Business Starter account.
Google has updated its support page with a new section discussing the free edition of G Suite for people who “use it for personal purposes and don’t want to upgrade to a Google Workspace subscription.”
Google makes no promises, but recommends that those users, who must have 10 or fewer users, complete a survey asking them to provide more information. Affected users must register with an email address other than gmail.com.
A survey to find out more
“Upgrading to a Google Workspace subscription is a seamless transition for all customers currently using the free edition of G Suite. However, we understand that some customers do not use their free edition of G Suite for business purposes and may be interested in other options. If you have 10 or fewer users in your group, and you are not using your free G Suite legacy edition for work purposes, please sign in to your administrator account to provide more information,” Google says.
The web giant also clarified that people who don’t upgrade to Workspace “will retain access to additional Google services and paid content purchased through non-Google Workspace services made with the legacy account (like movies purchased on Google Play).
The survey asks affected users whether they use the free G Suite legacy edition for personal use, to run a business, or both. Users are also asked to allow Google to send them “personalized updates and special offers regarding the free edition of G Suite legacy”.
On the issue of exporting and paid content, Google has also released a new section detailing a free, but basic option for those who don’t want to upgrade to a paid Workspace subscription, but want to transfer their data.
“In the coming months, we will offer you an option to transfer your non-Google Workspace paid content and most of your data to a free option. This new option will not include premium features such as personalized email or multi-account management. You will be able to evaluate this option before 1er July 2022 and prior to account suspension. We’ll update this article with details in the coming months,” Google says.
This option seems similar to the recently launched Workspace Individual Plan, but normally costs $9.99 per month and allows for some premium features, but does not include a personalized email address or multi-account management.
Source: ZDNet.com