Postbox's Journey Ends: Acquired and Discontinued by eM Client

The email client software Postbox, created by former engineers at the Mozilla Foundation from Mozilla Thunderbird, has recently been acquired by the Czech business email client eM Client. The specific details of the transaction have not been disclosed yet.

Unfortunately, eM Client does not plan to develop or operate Postbox. Instead, this email client will cease support on December 22, 2024. Users may continue to use it if they choose.

However, without necessary support, Postbox will no longer release software updates to provide new features or fix known security vulnerabilities. Therefore, continuing to use it will pose a security risk to users.

On another note, since 2020, Postbox ceased selling subscription licenses and fully transitioned to lifetime licenses, a move considered unconventional in an era where many software products are shifting from lifetime licenses to subscription models.

The issue is that following the acquisition of Postbox, this lifetime license essentially becomes a waste of money. Only users who have recently purchased a Postbox lifetime license are eligible for a full refund.

If you purchased a lifetime license half a year or a year ago, you might not be eligible for a refund. From this perspective, continuing with a subscription model, paying monthly or annually, might have been less of a financial loss as it could at least be refunded proportionally.

Users who have recently purchased Postbox must submit a refund request by November 22, 2024. Any late submissions will not be entertained, and eM Client has not specified what "recently" refers to in terms of the exact time frame or point.

As for why eM Client initiated this acquisition, it's likely in hopes of absorbing the team to provide more advanced features for the future eM Client, but it's clear that Postbox will no longer sell licenses or undergo development.

If you're not interested in using eM Client, consider switching to other email clients, including Outlook Win32 or Mozilla Thunderbird. In reality, there aren't many options available for users.