CNET: Google bans Gmail swaps and sales

Google announced it was making Gmail account trading explicitly forbidden in the terms and conditions of the free email service. The vast storage capacity and - perhaps most importantly - the very limited supply of accounts made Gmail accounts highly desirable for many digirati. Sites sprang up to facilitate trades, some specializing in quirky services and offers, such as an offer to include the giver of an account in an upcoming novel. At least two sites popped up for the sole purpose of distributing Gmail accounts to soldiers overseas. Google seemed to first look on with curiosity and neutrality, but many trades seem to have become much more profit oriented, with Gmail names being registered and then sold online, much like the long despised practice of domain name squatting.