How does email work? To use email, you always use two main parts, although you may not even realize it. There is always an email provider, which are the high-powered “email servers” that move email around from place to place, much like the US Post Office handles moving mail around through regional office and by trucks. The second main part lets you read your emails on your devices. The fancy name for this is your “email client” that you access either through an app or a browser. You can think of this like your physical mail box on the front of your house. Verizon has announced that it will no longer be running email servers, but they are offering to seamlessly move your mail over to AOL’s email servers. If you chose this option, you need to do 5 minutes of work on the computer to change over to AOL’s email servers, which I describe below, test it, and possibly change the “email client” that you use to read your email. This isn’t a huge change, and your email address (it looks like myname@verizon.net) will not change, and you’ll be able to get to all of your new and old email messages that you have saved.
Alternatively, you can choose to shut down your verizon.net email address completely and switch to another email service and email client. In this case, your email address will need to change to something new. This is more drastic, similar to changing physical address, and you’ll want to notify all of your friends and everyone who has your old email address that you’ve moved. You will very likely lose some email messages in a move like this, which may or may not be important. For this reason, I always suggest that you move your current email address, then set up an autoresponder message on the AOL email server that tells everyone who messages you that you’ve moved, and they should use your new email address. Your new email address might be provided through your company, GMail, or some other provider. Verizon will not help you set up another provider’s email service. You will have to work with another email provider to set up a new service. I recommend that you keep that old Verizon/AOL email account active with the autoresponder message, but that you stop using it for daily correspondence. Over time, you’ll get fewer and fewer messages, but you’ll be less likely to miss any important correspondence. Having your old Verizon/AOL email live but dormant does not cost anything, and might even be helpful, providing you with a backup or secondary email address, which can sometimes come in handy as a way to manage marketing messages.
Before you start, write down this important information to make this process easier:
Once you transition, your verizon.net email address will not change. When you register with AOL Mail, you will be prompted to create a new password for your account. This new password will be used to log in to your new AOL Mail account.
Do I need to update my settings if I am using an email application such as Outlook, Thunderbird or my mobile device? No, you do not need to change your POP/SMTP server settings. However, if you entered a different password for your mailbox during the migration to AOL Mail you will need to update your POP/SMTP and/or mobile phone settings with that password. Note: Passwords used on verizon.com to access additional services are not impacted by the email password change.
- How can I get assistance with migrating to another provider?
Visit the support pages of your selected email provider and search for instructions on importing your email service from your selected provider.
- What will happen if I decide to take no action?
Disclaimer: I am not a Verizon employee, and do not work for them, and am not compensated by them in any way. This information is provided as a courtesy to my clients and readers. If you are not confident of your abilities, please enlist a technical professional.