<p>Microsoft rebooted its aging Hotmail franchise a year ago, giving it a new name, Outlook.com, as well as a spiffy new interface and all the bells and whistles you expect from a modern free email service.</p><p>As in so many other areas, Microsoft's chief rival is a Google service: Outlook.com competes directly with Gmail, and the two services each have hundreds of millions of subscribers. Part of the goal of introducing Outlook.com was to lure back former Hotmail subscribers who had switched to Gmail since its launch almost a decade ago.</p><p>The trouble with switching email providers is that the process is technically daunting, especially for consumers whose eyes glaze over at the mere mention of acronyms like POP and IMAP. You'll find the gory details in this post: How I switched from Gmail to Outlook.com (and how you can too).</p><p>That's the impetus behind Microsoft's introduction today of an online service designed to make it easier to migrate from Gmail to Outlook.com. The service allows you to set up an Outlook.com account, connect it to an existing Gmail account using the secure OAuth protocol, then copy existing messages from Gmail to Outlook.com.</p><p><a href="http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-introduces-online-tool-for-gmail-switchers-7000024190/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2013/12/11/microsoft-builds-new-tool-to-help-gmail-users-move-to-outlook-com/">Microsoft Builds New Tool To Help Gmail Users Move To Outlook.com</a> (TechCrunch)</p><p><a href="http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2428222,00.asp">Microsoft Simplifies the Switch From Gmail to Outlook.com</a> (PC Magazine)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dH6EaNo9tOAiycM6tpxth-MEbKV0M&ned=us">14 additional articles.</a></p>