Technology

Tuesday Buzz: Mailbox Says Goodbye to Your Inbox

Mailbox, the Dropbox-owned email platform—purchased less than three years ago for more than $100 million—is shutting down. Also: A band directly affected by the Paris tragedy offers a lesson on how to bounce back.

Mailbox, one of the most popular mobile email apps, is going away.

It feels weird to write that; Mailbox kicked off a productivity revolution for email apps. Back in early 2013, the app launched with a fascinating line-based release strategy that ratcheted up hype as numbers ticked down. And when users finally got access to the platform, they largely found it was worth the hype, despite the lack of Exchange support.

But Dropbox, which purchased the app in 2013 for a cool $100 million, says that the email app was taking focus away from the company’s broader mission: building collaborative apps such as Dropbox Paper. As a result, the company is shutting down both Mailbox and the photo app Carousel.

“Building new products is about learning as much as it’s about making,” Dropbox cofounders Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi wrote. “It’s also about tough choices. Over the past few months, we’ve increased our team’s focus on collaboration and simplifying the way people work together. In light of that, we’ve made the difficult decision to shut down Carousel and Mailbox.”

Mailbox will close for good in February. For users looking for an alternative or two, Product Hunt has a useful list.

Comeback of the Day

The recent attacks in Paris created many scary moments, some of which were witnessed firsthand by the rock band Eagles of Death Metal while onstage during the terror attack at the Bataclan theater.

But the band has regrouped, and last night the musicians took the stage at a U2 concert—one that was initially set to occur the night after the Eagles of Death Metal show.

“They were robbed of their stage three weeks ago. We would like to offer them ours tonight,” Bono announced when introducing the band.

The Eagles of Death Metal also visited the Bataclan and paid tribute to the victims of the terror attacks.

When dealing with an unspeakable situation, you’re often defined not by the damage but by the way you recover, which makes the above performance heartening.

Other Links of Note

Is your approach to elections getting a little dull? The latest post from Votenet’s Devoted blog may give you some ideas on how to make things more interesting.

If you’re looking to get your hands on an iPhone 6S, now is a pretty good time to shop: Carriers are offering big deals on the phone, according to Forbes.

Is personalization a challenge? Over at CMSWire, SAP Hybris’ Charles Nicholls breaks down the headaches marketers face.

Ernie Smith

By Ernie Smith

Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. MORE

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