What Happened to Hotmail, Microsoft’s Old Email Platform Explained

Seattle: So, you remember Hotmail, right? It was this super popular email service back in the day. Launched in 1996, it was a big deal until Microsoft bought it in 1997. They rebranded it as MSN Hotmail, but most folks just called it Hotmail.

Hotmail had its share of ups and downs. Like, in 1999, it was discovered that anyone could log in using “eh” as a password. Yikes! And then there were those pesky hackers who figured out how to access other people’s emails. But despite these issues, it stayed popular for years.

Fast forward to 2013, Microsoft decided to merge Hotmail into Outlook. So, while Hotmail is technically gone, you can still use a Hotmail email address through Outlook. Just go to Outlook.com, and you’re good to go!

If you want a new Hotmail address, you can still snag one, but it’ll be through Outlook. And if you’re trying to recover an old Hotmail account, just hit up Microsoft’s recovery page. Just a heads up, if your account was inactive for over two years, it might be gone for good.

So, while Hotmail isn’t what it used to be, it’s still hanging around in a new form. No need to panic; Outlook is here to stay!