Zimbra reported in late 2009 that they have gotten forty million paid mailboxes over the year, nearly double their early 2009 list of twenty million. The reason that they were able to do this is due to the integration and innovation of Zimbra hosted sites and systems. Zimbra is in the lead in Gmail mash-ups, using fast and easy integration with open APIs to bring forth results that weren't even the main reason for the source data originally. Zimbra hosted content has found its way into various applications, because it is easy to extend.

Regarding innovation on the web, Zimbra hosted email beat Gmail by two years to offline application. This is an exceptional performance for a company that operates with many fewer employees than Google, as well as fewer employees with PHD's. Zimbra has moved ahead of Gmail in the area of unique mailboxes, and only a bit behind Hotmail service from Microsoft. This, too, is impressive, since Zimbra hosted email can take on the two largest software titans, in Google and Microsoft. You can use Zimbra email hosting through companies like Mind Centric.

People may point out, accurately, that part of the reason for the leap in Zimbra hosted email accounts came about due to Comcast deciding to use them for their email account holders. Many e-experts feel that it was unfortunate that Zimbra was paired with Yahoo, since Zimbra is an industry standout but Yahoo is not a great fit for Zimbra hosted enterprise-worthy email. They feel that the company would have done better, or would have been a better fit, if their email was paired with Adobe or Apple, since their customers are more design-savvy.

Zimbra hosted email features include a freedom of your choice of client and compatibility with HTML standard as well as Ajax advanced web browsers. As a PC client using Zimbra through online companies like Mind Centric, you can opt for using RSS, Thunderbird/Sunbird, Evolution, Eudora, iCal, Apple Mail and Outlook, and they will each work seamlessly with Zimbra hosted email. You can also access Zimbra email through wireless devices like Blackberry, iPhone, Palm and Windows Mobile. Zimbra can also offer self-organizing mailboxes, and fast searches through attachments and messages.

Some computer-savvy internet users have correctly pointed out that there is a difference between people who actively use a service, and the basic number of mailboxes that Zimbra has sold. Although this point is true, it doesn't necessarily change the positives on Zimbra hosted email accounts. Zimbra has more users who are paid and inactive, versus other providers who have free accounts that are not active. Everyone would agree that it is far more advantageous to have users who have paid for Zimbra hosted email, versus free email users hosted on sites like Gmail.

The doubling of email account users for Zimbra hosted email is undoubtedly mostly due to Comcast's selecting them for their email, but there was also bound to be a gap between the closing of that deal and the deployment of the email users to Zimbra supported email.