FormatEmail

FormatEmail is a proposed data interchange concept designed to encode the full content and metadata of email messages in a structured, machine-readable form. It aims to complement traditional MIME-encoded emails by providing a persistent, schema-driven representation suitable for archiving, indexing, and cross-platform transmission.

Core concepts include representing a message as a top-level object with fields for header data (message_id, date, from, to, cc, bcc, subject), body content (text and HTML variants), and attachments (name, mime_type, size, encoding, data reference). It also accounts for threading information through in_reply_to and references fields, and it distinguishes content from formatting or transport wrappers.

Syntax and encoding are typically described via a JSON-like schema called FormatEmail JSON (FEJSON). Implementations may also adopt a compact binary form for storage. Attachments are stored separately and referenced by a digest or URI, while the body may include multiple representations and inline resources. A FormatEmail document keeps provenance data such as version, schema-name, and optional cryptographic signatures for integrity.

Advantages commonly cited include improved indexability, easier diffs for version-controlled archives, and resilience to changes in transport wrappers. Limitations discussed in early proposals include potential redundancy with existing MIME structures, privacy and security considerations, and the need for broad tooling and standardization to achieve interoperability with RFC-compliant systems.

History and status: the term appears in technical discussions about email data interchange, but no formal standard has been universally adopted. Some projects prototype parsers or converters between FEJSON-like formats and standard RFC 5322 messages. See also MIME, RFC 5322, JSON, and email archiving.