zlacker

>>benhur+(OP)
This makes me anxious about my long time Gmail address. Back then I got it just because it and Google was cool, and their services had a good reputation. It was a different Google back then. If they had launched it this year I would never have got one because chances are it would have been cancelled by 2025. Gmail is really the only valuable thing that actually ties my life to Google. And it's not that hard to replace, but just a bother to inform some people and update account details.

>>jug+36
Start the process of getting out right now.

Get an email address that you own, on a domain you control. Switch to a provider that takes your money for whom you are the customer - not the product.

I did this with Fastmail and Iki.fi, a Finnish non-profit[1], who have been selling people "permanent" email addresses since 1995.

[1] http://www.iki.fi/

>>theshr+Jd
If you get your own domain, get one on a well-known TLD (e.g. .com, .org or your own country code). If you get a gTLD that's not well-known, there are some endpoints that will block you because your email is "not valid".

>>krageo+de
It's not a big deal. I've had a .so domain for a decade and have only had to use a different email a couple times.

There is a different danger however — after about 8 years the annual fee went from about $15 to $60.

>>akvadr+Xe
Price changes are a concern indeed. But I think if you get something form your country, or a .org, it should be mostly fine.

I've had the same .org domain for around 15 years now. Except for the coup we've seen last year where somebody tried to buy it privately (thankfully averted, I believe), I've see no price hike over time.