O2 IS to discontinue its free webmail service next month following frequent service disruptions that have left many users unable to receive emails, in some cases for up to three weeks.

In a statement to The Irish Times, the mobile operator said the technology platform that runs its webmail service had become outdated.

It is understood to have been originally developed more than eight years ago.

“It is our view that the quality of service is no longer of a high enough standard for customers,” O2 said. “Regrettably, we have taken the decision to discontinue the service, effective from 21 March 2012.”

In the meantime, O2 is advising customers to set up a new address with another email provider as soon as possible and to transfer any information they wish to keep to their new account.

O2 said ongoing service disruptions would be likely in advance of the shutoff date, but added that it would try to ensure the service remained stable until then.

No customer data from mailboxes will be lost as a result of the recent service disruption, the company added. O2 said it has approximately 16,000 active webmail users, representing 1 per cent of its total customer base.

A spokesperson said use of the service had been declining recently, adding that its mailboxes had a capacity of just 25MB. Other free email providers including Yahoo and Google offer unlimited storage.

The company had been winding down the service for some time. According to its website, it had not been providing new customers with an O2.iewebmail account since April 2010.

Since the outages first occurred in late January, O2 customers had been venting their frustration on message boards, including on O2’s own forum.

Some claimed they would move their account to another provider. One user said the outage was affecting visa documents, hotel vouchers and flight tickets which had not been delivered.

O2 apologised for the disruptions on its site and company staff had been posting on forums and message boards, acknowledging the problem and seeking to reassure customers that the outage was being addressed.