Plenty going on in the world of web hosting this month, but as ever, the big news was a bit away from the hosting arena. Google / YouTube will be taken to court by Viacom -- didn't need a crystal ball for that one, but it was open for debate who was going to take on this Internet gargantuan. In addition, the possibility of Google Pay-Per-Action (PPA) advertising put the industry in a spin with debate on whether it would impact web hosting's lifeblood - affiliate programs. Other news with reverberations, Netcraft reported the RegisterFly site offline and after signs that it had lost control of 6 million domain names, the company's Registrar Accreditation Agreement was terminated.
Firmly in the realm of web hosting, Hosting Zoom announced the launch of a Virtual Private Server subsidiary called modVPS, ZirHost kicked off operations with the promise of dedicated hosting value, Newtek Business Services became "cash flow positive" (diet cokes all round) and Rackspace Managed Hosting commissioned social research on "Generation C". Putting their money where there mouths are, Go Daddy made a donation to support the Open Source community and UK Provider Zen supported Comic Relief by turning its website red. On the competition front, you could win a year's free web hosting with WiseNav.
Good times rolling at interServer -- they announced the completion of a new 6,000 square foot datacenter, SupportPRO introduced an Open Source Helpdesk application -- pretty useful -- and UK2 retained an agency for the first time to spread the word! Also, NetExpressions re-launched in March, Daily.co.uk launched -- they come from good stock so keep your eyes on them -- and Tier1 launched a report that looks at the mass-market web hosting sector and tells it like it is!
A few companies got some just awards in March - NetRegistry was announced best web hosting company at the APC Internet Technology awards, Netcraft put Go Daddy ahead in the SSL race, and 3Tera's AppLogic System was named the 2007 category breaker for Enabling Easy Visual Control of Infrastructure and Web Based Applications -- with a name like that they must have used a lot of ribbon on the gong! A few people on the move in March - Yahoo! Inc. gained a new Vice President of Marketplace Quality, while dedicated hosting provider The Planet appointed James P. Treuting.
Zillions of acquisitions and partnerships in March -- news hit the streets of the likelihood that Virgin Media would purchase Pipex, ComfortHost.NET took over core-fusion.net, Web Server Intellect acquired ValiantHost, and NationalNet acquired ChiliHost. In addition, LINX partnered with The Colocation Exchange, Fasthosts and Microsoft partnered to offer a dedicated server package, The Planet and HostGator extended their strategic partnership, and Appliedi.Net chose SWSoft Virtuozzo, as did Brazil's largest web hosting provider. In addition, Open-Xchange where chosen to cater for 1 million plus email accounts for 1&1 Internet.
As ever, companies keeping ahead of the curve laid on plenty of promotions to entice customers! UK2 offered a buy one get one free promotion, Globat.Com offered 4 months free hosting, HostICan.com announced a St. Patrick's Day sale, and The Planet announced special prices on Dell Servers. Likewise, plenty of companies brought in new offerings to keep sales revenue flowing. Host Gator launched SEO hosting, CrystalTech Web Hosting enhanced server performance with Diskeeper Software, Microsoft updated solutions for hosting service providers, UnitSpeed Host launched hosted Exchange with MS Sharepoint, and XSI Hosting introduced redundant DNS, and mail servers aimed at businesses. Likewise, ResellersPanel launched a new web hosting control panel version, 123Together.com releaseed 40 Windows SharePoint Templates, and Pipe Ten made ASP.NET AJAX Hosting available in the UK. In addition, plenty of companies enhanced their offerings to stay ahead of the curve. Aplus.Net upgraded dedicated server plans, MochaHost.com launched Tomcat support, KnownHost upgraded its VPS, Easy CGI upgraded to MySQL 5.0.27, and WireNine enhanced its plans.
Aside from the RegisterFly debacle, there was plenty of activity in the area of domain names in March. Hostway released value-added domain name products and launched a domain name registration sale, LI Web Hosting reduced the cost of ".info" domain names, Go Daddy launched Domain Club, and NetNames was chosen to protect Coca-Cola Enterprises website addresses. In addition, quite a lot of affiliate program activity - Intermedia.NET offered web hosts and IT providers a cash bonus, while HostICan launched its Affiliate Program 2.0,
All in all, another killer month -- let us hope April is as good to us!
