How to Keep Windows Phone / Xbox App Purchases intact when switching to New Outlook Account

By Ashish - August, 1st 2012

Microsoft launched Outlook.com yesterday and with that many users have already rushed to create an email account ending with outlook.com. Some of you who rushed to change must have been warned and if you still haven’t, read it along.

What will happen to your Windows Phone when you rename existing Email Account :

Warning : So now if you have decided to move to a new Outlook Account and the account is already setup with your Windows Phone, Here is what you need to know :

Once you change, then on your phone, features that use this address will stop working, including Marketplace, Xbox LIVE, skydrive, email, and others.

To use these features again on your phone, you’d need to restore it to factory settings, which erases all personal content.

All of your other Microsoft account info—like contacts, photos and Office docs on SkyDrive—will also switch to your new address within a few days.

I guess this was one of the reasons we still don see the Calendar, Contact, Task Sync which started from yesterday.

There is now way to change Live Account on Windows Phone

Since we all know there is no way to switch Live Account, the only option is reset your Windows Phone which means you will lose the most important thing i.e. Text messages and there is no way to back up them, unless you have a unlocked phone to use the SMS Backup App but even then you cannot restore back.

Remember changing the Live ID using the Outlook Interface or using the https://account.live.com/ChangeId.aspx are same as they get to the same page.

Update Email Account in Microsoft Account

The Easy Way :

Now if you are not aware, Microsoft Outlook also gives you option to migrate to a new outlook account or use an alias.

Migrating to New Account : Inbox > Mail Settings > Rename your Email address
Create Alias : Inbox Mail Settings > Create an alias.

Using the second option is much easy and has advantage of using both the email id, though you can login through the original one only, but it keeps things easy for you.

Second Method : Use your Xbox to Switch your Live Account

I remember that when I had an US based Live Account, I followed a couple of steps on Xbox which allows me to change Windows Live ID Associated with that gamer tag.

Since here we want to use our New Outlook Account and still have the association with gamertag, zune and billing intact, This is what you need to do on the Xbox.

Go to XBox Console & Signin with your Gamaertag
Go to Settings > Profile > Account security > Change Windows Live Id
You will be asked for current account password and then the new account password.
Once done, all your points, gamer points etc will be transferred to the new live account, which here is your Outlook Account.

Change Windows Live Id with Xbox

I have detailed about this process here but that was more oriented towards freeing up association of Live Account with an old gamer-tag but the process is same. Once done, All your Zune, Gamertag, App Purchases will be synced with new one.