[andreashaerter]

I don't get the mostly black/white "Self-host" vs. "Mega-Corp" discussions as there is a middle ground: smaller managed service providers (even: per-service).

You don't have to self-host everything in your basement, and you don't have to hand your entire digital life to Google or Apple either. Mail, CalDAV/CardDAV, Immich, Nextcloud, OpenCloud, OpenTalk, web hosting, Kubernetes, simple VMs.. whatever ... fully managed, run by local or independent providers or by the company behind projects, without Big Tech lock-in. If chosen wisely, you can migrate, take over, or bring it in-house when you want. Just spend a few bucks and do some company research. Same as you would when choosing craftsmen, lawyers or something else.

For example, that's actually how we operate as a company for some of our customers and even a few single persons: we provide SaaS AND setup documentation. Customers can transparently take over at any time. We even help separate domains, credentials, and administration from us. Convenience without captivity. I am sure there are hundreds of shops like ours, providing comparable services for people in their wider neighborhood.

[sylens]

Upvoting this because I don't see this sentiment expressed too often on here. In fact, I often see the opposite. "Why would I pay $X*2 for this service when I can just pay $X to Google for the same thing?" Sometimes it takes a little more money to support these smaller managed service providers

[flas9sd]

maybe for the business target audience, but I doubt this can be a thing for the majority of users. They just want to get on with their day, not learn magic words to search for and relate to each other.

As for Apple fans, they specifically seek the vertical integration.