Posts Tagged ‘gmail’
Google email outages
The potential problems of cloud computing are coming to the fore with news that some users have been unable to access Google’s Gmail service according to a number of support forums. Users have had issues with both the web mail offering of the service as well as IMAP connections and some users reporting issues with POP.
To date, Google is not acknowledging the problem with a number of sites reporting that they have yet to receive a reply from the all-encompassing search engine giant – even customer paying the $50 per user per year support fees are complaining that telephones are not being answered.
Whilst outsourcing key services such as email access is often seen as delivering quick efficiency savings, small and medium enterprises should consider how much influence they can exert upon a company such as Google should a problem arise. Whilst providing excellent economies of scale, this is usually without any level of support with users unable to effect any change themselves.
Companies should think long and hard about the business case for moving to such a hosted service. In house provision is often expensive with a happy medium being a collaboration with a company specialising in support for your particular expertise or area. Long term contracts with strategic partners are the optimal way to improve your business efficiency without losing control of key business communication channels.
