Today I logged in to my customer account with Cox Communications and tried to add another email user account there. They used to let us have 5 email user accounts as a part of our internet service. I was keeping the last one on reserve for use with a new Mastadon server that I am setting up. When the Cox web interface wouldn’t let me add the new user, I called Cox. Cox is allowing those who have existing email accounts to keep them for now. But no new or existing internet service customers will ever be able to get new Cox e-mail addresses going forward. Apparently, Cox doesn’t want to be in the email business at all anymore.
From what I can tell, Cox is a leading ISP in at least ten US states. Maybe Purism might pick up some of those residential type of customers for the Librem Email service.
The librem one email seems like a good option for people who don’t like being spied on. Does anyone here know if the Librem email is reliable and always up?
I don’t know whether “the world” has improved since February as far as that particular bug in web sites goes.
Perhaps this makes sense. When ISPs first got into the business, if the ISP didn’t provide you with an email address, there probably wasn’t any other option for you to get one. Nowadays there are at least two alternatives to an ISP email address:
there are any number of free and paid email service providers, and
there are any number of other ways of communicating online i.e. instead of email, use some messenger / instant message platform.
Having an email address from the ISP just isn’t as important as it once was, and it is also a barrier to competition. (Clearly the second point would not motivate the ISP to drop its email service - quite the reverse - but if enough customers realise this then it may become uneconomic to continue to operate an email service.)
We here all understand that if you are not paying for the product then you are the product. So if you want to be spied on then you would use a ‘free’ service.
I’m assuming that is still an issue. I’ve just gotten used to having a separate email account for online purchases, and save my Librem.one email for personal correspondence and Purism related orders. Benefit is, my Librem email is blissfully spam free.
I’m switching to Cox from Verizon tomorrow. When asked what email do I want I told the agent I don’t want another email, I have plenty of them. He was happy with that. Will get a new number too. That should cut down on targeted by name spam calls except for my car warranty. It’s also political season, both political parties know who my wife and I are that should cut down on their “surveys”.