Microsoft Outlook.com Premium Discontinued, Integrated Into Office 365

After a long struggle to persuade users to pay for an ad-free experience, Microsoft has ultimately integrated Outlook.com Premium into Office 365. The latest development emerged months after the paid service left behind its preview and with its public release in the US.

Microsoft's Outlook.com Premium service was available in the US at an yearly charge of $49.95 (approximately Rs. 3,236). That amount accounted for features such as custom domain support, personalised email addresses, and an ad-free email service. All these features you can access now directly from your Office 365 Home and Personal subscription.

In addition to the original features, the Outlook.com Premium integration upgrades the mailbox storage space to 50GB for all Office Home and Personal subscribers. Microsoft is also touted to provide better malware scanning security and free technical support. However, these features are limited for Outlook.com email accounts. You need to sign up for your Office 365 Home or Office 365 Personal subscription with an Outlook.com email address ending with @outlook.com, @hotmail.com, @live.com, and @msm.com to add the new benefits.

It is worth noting here that you can share the features of Outlook.com Premium with four other members using your Office 365 Home subscription. Also, commercial accounts will not receive the integration as Microsoft has designed Outlook.com as a consumer service.

"Enjoy advanced protection against phishing and malware, no ads, and other premium features for your Outlook.com account -- all part of your Office 365 Home or Office 365 Personal subscription," Microsoft's Office 365 team writes on a support page.

In a separate support document, Microsoft confirms that current Outlook.com Premium subscribers will continue to receive the original features and even renew their subscriptions. This highlights that the company is currently not in plans to discontinue the standalone subscription for its existing subscribers.