Microsoft has just announced that it will be pushing through with its plan to reduce the free OneDrive storage space available to non-Office 365 subscribers from 15 GB to 5 GB starting July 27.
The decision to lower the storage space allowance was first revealed in November. Back then, Microsoft informed OneDrive users who are not subscribed to Office 365 that their allotted storage space allowance will be reduced by two-thirds. Their access to the free camera roll bonus service used to provide back up for photos will also be removed.
The storage space reduction will also affect those who are subscribed to Microsoft's software service plan. Their unlimited storage allowance will be cut to just 1 TB.
Despite the massive overhaul in allowable storage use, Microsoft said it will still offer existing OneDrive users a chance to keep their 15 GB worth of free storage space and 15 GB worth of camera roll bonus.
Those who use the file hosting service to store large amounts of data were also given a free one-year subscription to Office 365 Personal so that they can properly relocate their files.
On April 22, Microsoft sent out an email to all OneDrive users who missed out on the deadline for keeping their larger storage space to inform them that it will continue its planned reduction of available free storage.
While the company apologized for any inconvenience to OneDrive users, it reiterated that its decision to lower the storage space allowance was important so that it can continue to operate its file hosting service.
In 2014, Microsoft promised consumers that they can have unlimited access to OneDrive's cloud storage at no additional cost if they sign up to Office 365. This was made available to regular users and businesses alike.
The company backtracking on that promise triggered a backlash among OneDrive users, with some saying that Microsoft did a poor job of justifying the sudden changes.
