On April 1st, Google announced their free web-based email service called Gmail, currently in "preview release and limited test." An astounding 1 gigabyte of space is included as well as, what else, but a robust search engine designed to make archives and folders for organizing email, and for that matter, the act of deleting email, totally unnecessary. (Most free web-based email offers storage in the one-digit megabyte range.)
Incredulous industry watchers were uncertain....was this actually an April Fool's Day joke? It's been almost two months now, and I think it's safe to say that Gmail is no joke. But the hub-bub surrounding the product has been entertaining. If you haven't been following the Gmail controversy, let me summarize for you. Of course, it's all third-hand....I wasn't one of the select few who received and invitation to take Gmail for a spin. [sigh]
Google is a for-profit company, soon to be a public one. So the first question is how do they plan to make money while giving away 1 gigabyte of storage per user? By doing what Google does best with a slight twist. Your interests will be determined based on the text of your email rather than your search terms and targeted ads will be displayed based on those interests. No pop-ups, mind you, just the regular, text-based ads that you're used to seeing on your search engine results and on some web sites as well.
For example, you receive an email from a friend about her new digital camera, and, like magic, the Google ad shows you ads for great deals on digital cameras. At least, that's the theory.
This creeps out a lot of people, including 28 privacy groups. For a brief run-down of privacy concerns relating to ads, see "Will Google Read Your E-Mail" (PC Magazine, June 8, 2004).
California State Senator Liz Figueroa expressed her displeasure by introducing a bill with language intended to stop Gmail from scanning incoming email without the consent of the sender. Though if you look at more recent versions of the bill, you'll find the language has been watered down considerably. (For more information, see Gmail under attack in California)
Selected legislators and privacy groups may be upset, but I'll admit, the ads don't bother me a bit. It's a COMPUTER scanning your email and presenting related ads, not a person. After all, many computers read your email messages as they make their way to you over the Internet, including spam filters.
There are other concerns, for example, your email would be stored, indefinitely, on a Google server. Though this is true of all web-email services, it's more of an issue on Gmail because of the abundance of storage space they offer. And on Google, email might never be deleted. (I'm uncertain whether you actually CAN delete email from your Gmail account if you so choose. )
The fact that your email is stored on another server that is not completely within your control is a possible worry, though I suspect that your own computer containing all of your deepest, darkest secrets is probably less secure than the Google's servers.
The trade-off? The power of Google to search for that elusive email you received 4 months ago that you now desperately need. If you ask me, this is huge. Email contains an incredible amount of information that most people want to tap again and again. But I haven't found a web-mail service yet that allowed ANY kind of searching, and Outlook, though improved with 2003 according to all accounts, isn't quite there yet when it comes to search.
Will all this worry kill Gmail? It seems unlikely considering the demand for the preview Gmail accounts. There are rumors of Gmail accounts fetching sizable amounts on Ebay and even cartoons on the subject. (Cartoon reference courtesy of Steve Bass.)
To hear about Gmail from someone who actually has an account, and is a compulsive blogger (according to an article in the N.Y. Times), try Rich Wiggins' blog. Note that he points out some privacy protections that are lacking in Gmail, though not the ones that are most talked about, such as the lack of strict time-outs. One can hope, WILL be added before they go public with Gmail.
If you can't sleep at night knowing that a computer somewhere in Silicon Valley is reading your email, not to worry. If you don't want to use Gmail, you don't HAVE to. It's your choice. No one will force you. Really.
For more information see:
Web-Based E-Mail; Gmail: Google's E-Mail Winner
a few clarifications:
1) you absolutely CAN delete email on gmail. All they're saying in their GMail Terms of Use is that if your account were to get terminated for one reason or another, you would no-longer have access to that account, tho some residual data may be left on the system. This is standard practice, nothing out of the ordinary.
2) finally, another blogger and I exchanged a couple of thoughts surrounding privacy issues and concerned. It started with a comment of mine on his blog, and a follow-up exchange on my blog.
i hope this helps a bit.
I started out by agonizing over Gmail's creepiness factor and I've ended up being seduced by it. See my posts: http://www.metaforix.info/2004/04/googles_bambooz.html
http://www.metaforix.info/2004/04/adapting_to_the.html
http://www.metaforix.info/2004/04/adapting_to_the.html
True, I'm using Gmail only for nonsensitive messages. But I have a feeling that's only a matter of time. Also, I barely notice the ads.
With regard to deleting messages, Google's posted response to the privacy flap (http://gmail.google.com/gmail/help/more.html#data) flatly denies that "Google intends to keep copies of users' email messages even after they've deleted them, or closed their accounts." They say their backup practices are consistent with those prevalent in the industry and promise to "make reasonable efforts to remove deleted information from our systems as quickly as is practical."
Google still seems the closest approximation to corporate "good guys" as we're likely to get, so I'm tempted to believe them.
Lois Ambash