While only a small percentage of Google users was affected, that still accounts for thousands of users - tens of thousands, according to ComputerWorld, who estimates the number to be about 35,000.
TheNextWeb shares this statement from Google:
"A very small number users are having difficulty accessing their Gmail accounts, and in some cases once they're in, trouble viewing emails. This is affecting less than .08% of our Gmail user base, and we've already fixed the problem for some users. Our engineers are working as quickly as possible and we hope to have everything back to normal as soon as possible. We’re very sorry for the inconvenience."
Google's Andrew Kovacs has since tweeted:
The latest message on the Apps Status Dashboard from 4:15PM Eastern, says:
Google Mail service has already been restored for some users, and we expect a resolution for all users within the next 10 hours. Please note this time frame is an estimate and may change.
The remaining 0.012% of accounts are being restored on an ongoing basis.
Google has often boasted having tremendous uptime for Gmail, and while only a small percentage of users appears to have been affected, the widely publicized flub is sure to leave an impression on users.
Of course, there's barely a day that goes by when that I don’t have some kind of issue with Twitter (and I know I'm not alone), yet many of us keep using that. As long as Google gets everything recovered, as they seem pretty confident that they will do, this will probably be largely forgotten in no time - especially considering similar incidents from competitors.