Yesterday, Google announced the end of their free Google Apps for Business service. Starting immediately, all companies, no matter their size, will be required to pay $50 per user per year for Google's email and productivity suite.
While the statement from Google says that educational institutes will continue to be provided the service free of change, and while existing clients won't be affected, it seems unclear as to what this means for our non-profit sector.
Will non-profits continue to receive Google Apps for free via the Google grants? Might this significant change potentially spur fast innovation and tools that are open source?
Update: Google has written their nonprofit pricing model...
U.S. nonprofit organizations with over 3,000 users are now eligible for Google Apps for Business at a 40% discount ($30/user/year). If your organization has under 3,000 users, you can apply for the free Google Apps for Education through the Google for Nonprofits site.
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