SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov. 8, 2000 — Highlighting the strength of the Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Platform for the ISP market, Microsoft Corp. will lay out the .NET road map for ISPs at ISPCON Fall 2000. This includes the launch of new programs and tools tailored to meet the rapidly growing challenges of today’s service provider industry. Brian Valentine, senior vice president at Microsoft, will address these topics during his Nov. 10 keynote speech introducing Microsoft’s new Windows Web Hoster Program and announcing new research that demonstrates the strength of Windows 2000 for hosting.
Windows Web Hoster Program: Windows 2000 Product, Training and Support Discounts
Designed specifically to accelerate the adoption of Windows 2000 for shared hosting, the new program features an online community providing technical information and support for Web hosters. The program also gives hosters one free copy of Windows 2000 Advanced Server, one free copy of the Windows 2000 resource kit and discounts on training and support. Further program information can be obtained at http://www.microsoft.com/ISN/ISP/wwhp/ .
New Research Reveals Windows 2000 Benefits for Service Providers
At ISPCON, Microsoft will reveal the results of a rapid economic justification (REJ) analysis initiated by Atlanta-based application service provider Interland Inc. to examine the financial impacts of upgrading its hosting services to Windows 2000 Server. Validated by the Giga Information Group, the study determined that Windows 2000 would significantly improve the efficiency of Interland’s current hosting business and enable it to enter new, high-value, application hosting markets. The scalability of Windows 2000 has allowed Interland to host four times as many Web sites, and the study revealed a number of cost savings opportunities:
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The time required for security configurations decreased by 39 percent.
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Application development time was reduced by 33 percent.
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Support center operations costs were reduced up to 20 percent.
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IT and management operating costs decreased 35 percent.
“Our customers demanded rock-solid stability and scalability to deliver cost-effective, state-of-the-art technologies to our Web-hosting and ASP customers with minimum time-to-market,”
said Robert Malally, chief technology officer at Interland.
“Windows 2000 Server provides both, and has enabled our hosting infrastructure to meet critical business success factors like improving gross margins, driving revenue and improving customer satisfaction. The results are conclusive that the Windows 2000 platform provides superior business and technical value.”
Other ISPs and ASPs also are seeking to benefit from the scalable, reliable and cost-effective platform, which offers a range of technologies especially important to the ISP/ASP industry.
“There’s no question that a highly scalable platform is a key to success for ISPs, ASPs and others that want a piece of the hosting pie,”
said Audrey Apfel, vice president and research director with Gartner Group Inc.
“Platforms built with technology optimized for the hosting environment will help service providers offer and deliver the service level agreements their customers will demand.”
Since its February release, more than 300 ISPs have adopted the platform, and more than 850 have received Windows 2000 training. ISPs such as HostPro Inc., Innerhost Inc. and Verio Inc. have all successfully put Windows 2000 to work for them.
“We had to make a critical decision about which platform we would use based on three criteria: reliability, scalability and cost effectiveness,”
said Luis Navarro, chief executive officer of Innerhost, a global provider of complex managed hosting solutions that migrated to Windows 2000 earlier this year.
“Without a doubt, Microsoft Windows technology met and surpassed the goals we set. Windows 2000 remains the one and only platform of choice for our business, which has experienced 350 percent revenue growth over the past two years. We are convinced that Microsoft offers the only technology a company can bet its business on.”
Another company using Windows 2000 is Rivio, a California-based ASP that has built its set of small-business workflow applications on Windows 2000, offering other service providers a reliable, value-added service they can offer to their own customers.
“Microsoft .NET technologies will enable us to further enhance our position as an integral component in delivering a new generation of small-business Web applications,”
said Navin Chaddha, president and CEO of Rivio Inc., formerly Biztro Inc.
“In addition to the unique ability of the Windows 2000 platform to provide multiple levels of customization, quick deployment, scalability and reliability, our work with Microsoft will help us deliver Web-based applications to small businesses to streamline workflow and improve operating efficiencies.”
Rivio joins Microsoft industry partners Portal Software Inc., Compaq Computer Corp., Digital Island Inc. and Winstar Communications in the Microsoft partner pavilion at ISPCON, Microsoft booth No. 809.
Brian Valentine Keynote to Detail Windows 2000 and .NET for Service Providers
In his Friday Nov. 10 keynote, Microsoft Senior Vice President Brian Valentine will detail how service providers can use Microsoft .NET technology, related tools and support to enable their own next-generation Internet services.
“The world of the traditional ISP and ASP is changing, and Microsoft is aiming a tremendous amount of technology and resources toward one goal: ensuring that those service providers succeed,”
said Valentine.
“Microsoft’s .NET vision is all about enabling next-generation Internet services, and service providers know more than anyone what it will take to deliver those services to business customers around the world. Microsoft has the best technology, the best programs and best support available to help those service providers succeed.”
The Microsoft .NET initiatives, which were announced in June, combine new Internet devices and programmable Web services to give businesses the power to provide consumers with an integrated, secure and easy-to-use Internet experience.
As part of Valentine’s speech, Microsoft will demonstrate a new Web provisioning administration tool that demonstrates how the Windows platform makes it easy for ISPs and ASPs to provision new customer accounts. The code from the demonstration will be made available over Microsoft’s Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/isn/webadmin/ , allowing independent software vendors (ISVs) and service providers to tailor the technology to their own provisioning needs.
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