Today Google announced a new service based on technology from its Postini acquisition: Google Message Continuity. “Google Message Continuity works by replicating email accounts hosted on Microsoft Exchange Servers in the cloud, using Gmail, Calendar and Contacts,” according to Google’s announcement. “If the Microsoft Exchange Server fails, or requires scheduled maintenance or downtime, all you have to do is log into Gmail and continue regular, up-to-date email communication through Google.”
Why is Google doing this? Again, from the announcement:
Google Message Continuity can also help organizations transition to Google Apps down the road. Since Microsoft® Exchange and Gmail are always in sync with one another, there’s no need to migrate email data when eventually deploying Google Apps. With Gmail, Calendar and Contacts available, users can get familiar with these cloud services without having to abruptly stop using their regular email system.
This could be a great solution for organizations taking tentative steps towards e-mail in the cloud, or that want to take advantage of cloud computing without giving up on-premise solutions.
Google Message Continuity will cost $25 per user per year for non-Postini or an additional $13 per user per year for current Postini customers.
