Why I’m Not Offering Free Gmail Accounts

Now that Google’s giving away more and more Gmail accounts — current users’ accounts were recently topped up with six more invitations each — everyone’s offering to invite friends, acquaintances, etc. One kind soul offered accounts on an e-mail list I participate in. Others use their blogs to practice their benevolence. An alliance has even sprung up to give away Gmail accounts to our troops.

I’ve had a Gmail account (or two) for quite some time, but I have to admit I haven’t been making such offers. The reason? Gmail has a lot of problems/drawbacks.

Some examples:

• Can’t change your address/Use existing addresses. On my Yahoo! Mail (granted, I pay $19.99/year for it), I can use any address I own. I can receive at those addresses (through forwarding) and mail from them. There’s no need to be tethered to any Yahoo! branding, as there is with Gmail.
  
• No POP access. It’s been said before many times. You can’t retrieve your Gmail for reading elsewhere. (Though I have seen talk of an app. that’s said to address this.)
  
• No disposable addresses. My Yahoo! account lets me create any number of disposable e-mail addresses to give out when the occasion calls for it.
  
• Lack of attention to spam. Gmail’s spam filter — when I was using it regularly a while back — seemed to let through quite a bit more than my other filters. Also, (and I watch these things), I don’t see anyone from Gmail participating in any of the anti-spam disussions taking place among major e-mail providers.
  

The main problem with Gmail, though, isn’t any particular failing. It’s just the fact that it doesn’t have a unique compelling value proposition. I can get everything I need with Yahoo! for twenty bucks a year. As Matt blogged a while back: “…all these people talking about how 30mm people are going to switch over to it must be seeing something I don’t.”

P.S. All that said, if anyone still wants a Gmail account, I will part with a few. (I need to hold on to some for testing.) E-mail me at theriver (at) mcnigel.com. Just please let me know why you want one.