After announcing in November, that storage space on OneDrive will be reduced from 15 GB to just 5 GB, Microsoft has withdrawn its disappointing plan after severe widespread criticism. Though the storage space will remain 15 GB, the exclusion of unlimited storage tier remains in effect.
Microsoft’s unplanned actions received a strong response from the users, over 70,000 in all, who showered the UserVoice site with their comments, urging the company to give back the storage space. After the overwhelming response that showered the OneDrive feedback site, Microsoft was forced to respond.
We’ve heard clearly from our Windows and OneDrive fans about the frustration and disappointment we have caused. We realize the announcement came across as blaming customers for using our product. For this, we are truly sorry and would like to apologize to the community.
said MS
The OneDrive storage space will remain 15 GB and an additional 15 GB camera roll bonus, which gives users a 30 GB free storage space overall (which has to be claimed by January). But, the company is still adamant at keeping unlimited storage space excluded from its cloud services. The unlimited storage will be reduced to 1TB of storage space by next year. Microsoft will allow a 12 month grace period for users with have crossed 1TB of storage to transfer their data. Unless the users comply with the new policy their data remains at the risk of being deleted.
Existing OneDrive users can, however, opt out of this feature only for a limited time. Users opting out of this plan will be notified through an email. Clicking the link will enable them to retain their 30 GB of free storage. However, this bonus feature for current users will be available only till the end of January. New users signing into OneDrive will not get to claim even these benefits.
This new policy clearly gives out Microsoft’s intention to use OneDrive solely for storing Office 365 documents and not the overwhelming personal files of the users. The Office subscribers who have stored more than 1TB of data on OneDrive and are not satisfied with the new policy can file for a refund. “
OneDrive subscribers who have used the unlimited storage will get a 12 month grace period within which they have to transfer their data to comply with the current 15 GB storage policy. In the midst Microsoft is also looking to boost its Office 365 Personal subscriptions by offering one year free subscription for those users who have more than the allowed storage space following the new changes.
For customers of our free service who have over 5 GB of content and who are directly impacted by the storage change, we will offer one free year of Office 365 Personal, which includes 1 TB of storage. These customers will receive an email with redemption information early next year.
