2013 was arguably the best year yet for Windows Phone, and now Microsoft is reportedly looking to return the favor to customers of its mobile platform. According to user reports, Microsoft is contacting Windows Phone owners by email and offering them a free 20GB increase in their SkyDrive storage for the next year.
First launched in 2007, SkyDrive is Microsoft’s cloud storage and syncing service. Although available to users on any platform, including OS X, recent Microsoft products – such as Windows 8, the Microsoft Surface, and the Xbox One – have offered a full integration with SkyDrive, allowing users to store and sync photos, documents, and application data across multiple PCs and devices.
SkyDrive offers all users 7GB of storage for free, with a deal for students increasing that total to 10GB. Additional storage, up to 200GB extra, can be purchased for a yearly fee. Microsoft has also frequently run promotions for additional SkyDrive storage when users purchase certain products or services. Purchasers of the Surface 2 or Surface Pro 2, for example, get 200GB of free SkyDrive storage for two years.
Now, according to emails sent to Windows Phone users, Microsoft is bringing a SkyDrive promotion to its mobile phone platform. Interested users should find the email from Microsoft in their inboxes shortly; they’ll have until January 31st to claim the offer. The storage increase stacks on top of any existing plan, meaning that those taking advantage of the deal will enjoy a minimum of 27GB of free storage for the next year.
Microsoft no longer offers a 20GB paid upgrade tier (plans now start at 50GB), but before the company killed it, Microsoft valued the added storage at $10 per year, making the Windows Phone promotion a small, but appreciated early Christmas present from the folks in Redmond.
