Google introduced Gmail in 2004. On 1st of April this year, it would be 13 years old. When Gmail started off, it was the new kid in the block and faced immense competition from the likes of Yahoo, AOL and Hotmail, three established players in the industry. Gmail began as an invite-only e-mail service, but soon grew popular and was made open for all users. The service has over the years become the top name among email users. With over a billion monthly active users, Gmail is massive. The key to Gmails secret is regular updates. Gmail for Web, Android and iOS, all keep getting updates from time to time.
Gmail for Web users have begun receiving a new update today where they can stream their attached videos which they have received without having to download it. In the past, Gmail for web users had to download the video file to play the video. In some cases they needed a software to play the video too. However, this update eliminates all those problems. While this is a minor update, it has major implications. Users will now save on a lot of time on this too.
The streaming videos will be played in a YouTube like format with YouTube-like controls. Google says that video streaming of attachments on Gmail for Web has been made possible using the same technology that powers YouTube as well as video streaming on Google Drive. This is indeed quite a major step up for Google.
Google has been improving Gmail’s services for quite a while now. Gmail users received an update a couple of days ago that allows them to send and receive money on Google Wallet via mail! The company keeps innovating various offerings of theirs, and this constant improvement has indeed been the key and the core component to the large scale success of Google.