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Yahoo Attempts to Keep Users by Violating Their Trust

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Yahoo! Mistreats Customers
Some of the questions we frequently answer when exploring cloud options for small and midsize businesses are about how we will be able to get the data out of the service and/or move to a different service if necessary. Our answer is that reputable cloud providers understand these concerns and provide the means to export, remove, and transfer data and accounts.

According to a report this week by ZDNet, Yahoo has decided to violate Yahoo Mail users’ trust and block users from automatically forwarded emails to other accounts and services. While Yahoo claims this feature was shut off because a better version is “in development”, the feature remains active for those already using the service. And since when does a cloud service turn off a popular feature before the upgraded replacement is ready?

Hey, Yahoo!, We Call “BULLSHIT!”

This is not a feature upgrade in the making, this is a blatant attempt to make it difficult for users to abandon ship following Yahoo’s delayed disclosure that 500 million accounts were breached in 2014. Verizon is already asking for $1 Billion dollars back on the purchase price given that Yahoo! failed to disclose the breach and associated liabilities during due diligence for the acquisition. A rapid loss of business customers will only further cripple Yahoo!.

Instead of keeping customers by earning back their trust, Yahoo! is clearly manipulating their services. By giving the appearance that moving to a new provider is more difficult, Yahoo! hopes to raise the “barrier to exit” enough to keep its customers.

Still Easy to Move

While automated forwarding is nice to have when changing email providers, the feature is not a requirement.  We can still capture and move all of your existing data to G Suite or Office 365. Without forwarding, we change the timing of events to avoid any data loss.

Your Next Move

Maybe it is time to reconsider Yahoo! as your email provider. With the Verizon-Yahoo! merger focused on other services, and the outcome now uncertain, may now is the time to switch to a provider focused on helping you and your business, not just protecting their own.

If the time is now, or soon, we have special incentives to lessen the cost of moving from Yahoo! Mail to G Suite or Office 365. Learn more or contact us for a free consultation.

Verizon Acquires Yahoo! — Trouble for Business Subscribers?

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Yahoo SignWith Verizon’s acquisition of the Yahoo! core business services underway, subscribers to Aabaco Small Business — the business email solution from Yahoo! — face uncertain times. While there is no indication of what Verizon may do with the Aabaco Small Business services, the focus of the Verizon acquisition is clearly Yahoo! services that Verizon can roll into its upstart digital media business.  As reported by The Wall Street Journal and others, Verizon is acquiring Yahoo! for the content and audience.  Business email and ecommerce services are clearly not top of mind.

Priced from $34.95 to $119.40 per year, Aabaco’s email service is as a basic webmail solution. The service includes spam/virus protection, filtering, and forwarding, although the web interface is simple and the service only supports POP email clients (no IMAP service). The service does not include calendar, IM/Chat, video calling services, file storage, and other services typically found in more robust email and communication suites.

Many Aabaco customers may choose to wait and see how the acquisition plays out and, therefore, how long they can continue to get support and service on an aging platform that lacks competitive features.

For many others, the acquisition is a great time to explore other solutions for cloud-based services. Both Google for Work and Microsoft Office 365 expand upon basic email services with robust communication and collaboration features and tools, and both integrate with a variety of marketing and ecommerce platforms.

For those with Aabaco websites and ecommerce service subscriptions, exploring Shopify, ProStores, and others may offer more robust, modern, and cost-effective solutions. The migration, however, is more complex as it involves multiple services.

We recommend that Aabaco subscribers begin looking at alternatives.  Whether or not you make a change now or in the future, understanding your options along with the relevant merits and costs, empowers you to make better decisions. You can also be ready to make your move if/when the time is right.

Are you an Aabaco customer interested in exploring alternatives?  Offering both Google for Work and Microsoft Cloud solutions, our Cloud Advisors can provide you with an unbiased assessment of your options. Contact us for a free consultation.