Apple has extended its .Mac service a bit for folks who have already joined up. Now all memberships have been extended to the end of September 2003.
Ostensibly the replacement for Apple’s soon-to-be-discontinued free iTools service, .Mac offers Mac users the ability to send and receive e-mail, share files, publish Web pages, backup content, check for viruses and more. Unveiled in July, the subscription-based service costs US$99 a year, although Apple has offered existing iTools users a $49 upgrade offer to draw them to the new service.
Until now, your membership lasted 12 months from the day you signed up, but Apple has announced that all memberships have been extended to a uniform date — September 30, 2003, a year from the crossover date for existing iTools members. Apple hopes that it may draw more .Mac subscribers to the fold who perceive the change as an added value.
“That means that the sooner you join, the more time you get to enjoy the full benefits of .Mac membership, including expanded iDisk and Mac.com mail storage, Virex virus protection, peace of mind with Backup and more,” Apple told subscribers.