Google's Deletion of Inactive Accounts Raises Concerns Over Free Online Service Models

• Google is deleting old user accounts that have been inactive for at least two years.
• Tech YouTuber "Mental Outlaw" believes this indicates Google is running out of storage.
• Google's initiative suggests the decline of free online service models.
• Adblocking services and privacy-focused browsers have affected revenue for big tech companies.
• Google's policy change aims to strengthen security measures and will not affect school or business accounts.
• Alternative platforms like Functionland and Irys challenge centralized data storage by big tech companies.

Summary :
Google is deleting old user accounts that have been inactive for at least two years, leading some to speculate that the company is running out of storage. Tech YouTuber "Mental Outlaw" believes this move indicates the decline of free online service models. Many early Gmail users used the service as a form of cloud storage, saving gigabytes of photos and files on the platform. Google's initiative to reclaim underused space and abandoned accounts suggests that the free storage services are becoming too costly to maintain. The growing popularity of adblocking services and internet browsers like Brave, which prevent data harvesting by big tech companies, has also affected revenue for these firms. This downward pressure on revenue has threatened the current business model of offering free online services in exchange for collecting user data. Google announced the policy change at the end of 2023, stating that it would begin deleting user accounts in December of that year. The company cited security concerns as the reason for the deletion, emphasizing that abandoned accounts are often vulnerable to misuse. This policy only applies to individual accounts and does not affect accounts used by schools or businesses. Alternatives to big tech storage and services, such as Functionland and Irys, are emerging to provide users with more autonomy over their data and challenge the dominance of companies like Google and Amazon Web Services in the cloud storage market.

Sources :

- CoinTelegraph