Review Zone Site Ranks Web Hosts

Web Hosting Review Zone (www.webhostingreviewzone.com) announced it has launched a new free resource website for consumers that compares competing web hosting services.

The website enables people to submit and view customer reviews, comparing the the various competing hosting services using multiple criteria, such as price, features, and software.

Customers can review these areas on a scale of one to ten. After each feature is rated, the company then averages out the different ratings to decide an overall rating for the hosting service.

On its home page, the site features the day’s top 10 web hosts based on multiple independent reviews by certified Internet webmasters, enterprise users, personal users and other e-commerce companies.

The current top 10 list features BlueHost as the highest rated web host, followed by HostGator, IX Web Hosting, HostRocket, HostMonster, PowWeb, EasyCGI, iPower Web, FatCow, and StartLogic.

Web Hosting Review Zone encourages its visitors to look at the reviews to see how their current hosting service compares to the competition.

According to the press release, the site is independently owned and operated, and was “formed in order to provide an impartial reviewing service to the public, offering “unbiased” reviews that will help the general public decide on the right hosting service for them.

However, the site features prominent banner ads for all of its top 10 web hosts, both above and below their individual reviews, which might raise suspicion among some visitors.

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Host Gator Reseller and Dedicated Hosting Firm, Ranks on Inc 5000 List

Shared, dedicated and reseller web hosting firm, Host Gator, has been ranked by Inc.com, as the 21st fastest-growing private company in the country, on its Inc 5000 list.

Brent Oxley, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of HostGator remarked, ”I started the company with a $1,000 budget from my dorm room in Boca Raton, FL. Today the owners of more than 1.3 million websites depend on our hosting service. We are extremely proud of our strong past growth, but we’re really only getting started.” Mr. Oxley, who turned 25 in March, attributes the growth of the company to its commitment to customer service and dedication to providing customers with the best web hosting experience in the hosting industry.

The 2008 Inc. 5000 list measures revenue growth from 2004 through 2007. To qualify, companies must be U.S.-based and privately held, for profit, independent – not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies – as of December 31, 2007, and have had at least $200,000 in revenue in 2004, and $2 million in 2007.

HostGator revenue grew by 5297% during the measured period. In addition to being ranked #21 overall, HostGator was also ranked #1 for growth in the Houston metro, #2 for growth in the Business Services category, and #1 for growth within the state of Texas.
The Houston-based company had revenues of $18,700,000 in 2007 compared to revenues of $326,000 in 2004 and projects revenues over the next 12 months will reach $50,000,000. Since moving to Houston in 2006, HostGator has created over 155 positions for highly skilled technicians and systems administrators. It recently completed renovations to accommodate a large increase in hiring activity and expects to add at least 100 new employees in Houston over the next few months.

In January, after reporting a successful fiscal year, has given gifts to support cancer fighting initiatives, while promoting education in underdeveloped countries.

The company gave $100,000 to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX, and $25,000 to One Laptop per Child. The gifts were decided upon by HostGator management and staff, including a significant contribution to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.

In addition. HostGator donated to the international organization, One Laptop Per Child. The Anderson Cancer Center received a gift of $100,000 and One Laptop per Child received $25,000. The goal of One Laptop per Child is spelled out in its name: to improve the educational opportunities for children in underdeveloped regions by giving every child access to an inexpensive, durable, web-capable laptop. At $100 each, the gift from HostGator should provide at least 250 laptops.

The gift to One Laptop per Child was another easy decision, according to Mr. Oxley, ”If it wasn’t for the internet and computers we wouldn’t be in business. If just one of the kids can further their knowledge in computers and make a career out of it, in some shape or form, it will have been worth every penny.”

At Anderson, one of the country’s largest cancer treatment centers, HostGator’s gift will go to support a variety of programs — from research and clinical trials, to education, counseling and treatments. Mr. Oxley says as HostGator continues to grow and earn profits, it will continue increasing the amount of its annual gifts.

Inc.com, the daily resource for entrepreneurs, delivers how-to guides, advice, tools, breaking news, and rich multi-media to help business owners and CEOs start, run, and grow their businesses. Inc.com offers dynamic marketing solutions to help advertisers effectively reach Inc.com’s audience of business leaders.

Host Gator is a provider of shared, dedicated and reseller web hosting services focused on the consumer and small business markets. Founded in 2002, Host Gator provides hosting for over 1.3 million websites and supports over 50,000 resellers worldwide with 24/7 technical support and web hosting tools, including free billing software for resellers and access to over 4,500 high quality free web templates. Host Gator has offices in Houston, Texas and its data center operations are co-located out of The Planet’s facility in Dallas, Texas, enabling it to access Tier-1 backbone providers such as UUNet, Sprint, Level 3, Global Crossing, Verio and AT and T and AboveNet.

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Web Hosts Make Inc. 5000 List

A handful of web hosts have found themselves on this year’s Inc. 5000 list (inc.com/inc5000), with HostGator (hostgator.com) leading the group with a ranking of the 21st fastest-growing private company in the nation.

Entrepreneurial resource Inc.’s (inc.com) 2008 edition of the Inc. 5000 list measures revenue growth from 2004 through 2007 for companies in various sectors, including business services, engineering, transportation, retail, computers, real estate, software, energy, media, and IT services.

Companies had to adhere to certain criteria to qualify, including being based in the United States, privately held, for profit, independent as of December 31, 2007, and have had at least $200,000 in revenue in 2004, and $2 million in 2007.

In addition to being ranked #21 overall, The Houston-based HostGator was also ranked #1 for growth in the Houston metro, #2 for growth in the Business Services category, and #1 for growth within the state of Texas. The company boasted revenues of $18,700,000 in 2007 compared to revenues of $326,000 in 2004.

The company projects revenues over the next 12 months will reach $50 million. Since moving to Houston in 2006, HostGator has created over 155 positions for highly skilled technicians and systems administrators, and expects to add at least 100 new employees in Houston over the next few months.

“I started the company with a $1,000 budget from my dorm room in Boca Raton, Florida,” says Brent Oxley, HostGator’s founder and CEO. “Today the owners of more than 1.3 million websites depend on our hosting service. We are extremely proud of our strong past growth, but we’re really only getting started.”

In addition to HostGators high ranking, many other web hosting and Internet services companies were ranked in the fastest growing category.

Host.net (host.net) ranked #620, Liquid Web (liquidweb.com) at #693, ORCS Web (orcsweb.com) at #2,423, Hivelocity Hosting (hivelocity.com) at #2,512, ViaWest (viawest.com) at #2605, and Evolution (evolution.com) at #2670.

UPDATED: Following the posting of this story, Media Temple (mediatemple.net) contacted the WHIR to point out that it also made the Inc. 5000 list with an overall ranking of #1371.

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Zilker Ventures Launches Web-Hosting-Info.com, a Review and Comparison Website for Web Hosting Services

With its latest website, Web-Hosting-Info.com, Zilker Ventures wants people who are searching for a web hosting service provider to know that they are not alone.

“When we first looked into finding a web hosting service provider we were completely stumped. The sheer number of web hosting service providers and available plans made it hard, even for us, to make a decision about which one to choose. This site was made with the intent of making the whole process a lot easier for you than it was for us.”

The message, which is visible on Web-Hosting-Info.com, calls attention to the aim of all Zilker Ventures websites. Like its sister business service review sites, Web-Hosting-Info.com was created with the small business owner in mind. The site was created to inform users about the top, affordable web hosting plans available.

“Part of what makes our sites so successful is the fact that we aren’t afraid to tell people who don’t have a clue what they’re really getting out of the service,” says Zilker Ventures COO Leo Welder. “No, this provider doesn’t have a money back guarantee, but they will refund any time for unused months of service-details like that.”

Tidbits of service feature information, such as the one mentioned by Welder, comprises only one part of the comprehensive resource that is Web-Hosting-Info.com. Users of the website are able to view a features grid, which allows them to make a side-by-side comparison of different web hosting service plans, and a robust vendor reviews page that breaks down each plan into “Pros,” “Cons” and a general conclusion about the service.

Other important parts of the website are the “Market Standard” and “Our Recommendations” sections, which advise consumers on important aspects of web hosting services that help them evaluate a provider and service plan.

“We want people who visit the site to have an enlightening experience, whether they know something about web hosting or not,” says Web-Hosting-Info.com co-creator Gaines Kilpatrick. “We try to help people be able to make an informed decision about the web hosting service they choose.”

Web-Hosting-Info.com researches and reviews service plans from web hosts, such as Host Gator, GoDaddy, Yahoo and many other web hosting service providers. Zilker Ventures plans to expand their list of reviewed vendors as Web-Hosting-Info.com grows.

For additional information regarding Web hosting comparison and reviews, visit http://www.Web-Hosting-Info.com.

Zilker Ventures, LLC is a web publisher that consolidates information and reviews various business and financial products.

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Ex-Hostgator.com Employee Accused Of Hacking

HOUSTON, TX— Cliff L. Wade, a former employee of hostgater.com, has been arrested in Atlanta, Ga., following the return of a federal indictment in Houston, charging him with computer intrusion allegedly committed in October 2007.

Wade, 37, was arrested Thursday, June 26, by FBI agents in Atlanta and is expected to make an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate judge there, where the issue of bond pending trial in Houston is expected to be determined.

According to allegations in the indictment, in early October 2007, Wade, a support technician employed at the Houston-based web hosting company, moved to Atlanta and began working for a competing company without ever notifying Hostgator that he had ended his employment status.

Web-hosting companies, such as Hostgator, provide server space, web services and maintenance for web sites of individuals or companies that do not have their own web servers. The government alleges Wade gained access into the Hostgator system and then knowingly executed several command and code functions to intentionally impair the integrity of the customer support network. Hostgator never authorized the execution or transmission of these commands. As a result of the intrusion, the defendant caused Hostgator to incur a loss in excess of $5,000 during October 2007.

The government alleges Hostgator’s losses include a significant loss of revenue and financial loss due to the damage assessments and restoration of the data and programs.

The criminal intrusion charge carries a maximum punishment of 10 years imprisonment upon conviction and a maximum fine of $250,000. 6-27-08

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Web Hosting Provider Host Gator Moves Headquarters to Houston, Texas and Launches Company Blog

Host Gator, a leading provider of shared, dedicated and reseller hosting, announced today that is has completed the move to its new headquarters in Texas and launched a new company blog.

The new offices are located a few minutes from downtown Houston, where the company has purchased a 4-story, 30,000 square foot building for $2.4 million. This state-of-the art facility features high levels of security, monitoring and expanded infrastructure to support Host Gator’s customer service operations. The new location already houses 100 employees, and has the capacity to accommodate the company’s plans to eventually expand its headcount up to 300. To date the new headquarters is currently handling hundreds of phone calls, thousands of tickets, and about one thousand live chats a day.

Included in the new staffing will be system administrators and webmasters of all technical levels. On the employee lifestyle side, Host Gator looks to keep its staff as happy as its customers with a casual work environment, including a gym, showers and assorted games such as a pool table, air hockey and ping pong. Pizza is free for staffers on Monday and Friday.

“We are extremely pleased to announce this major milestone”, said Brent Oxley, chief executive officer of Host Gator. “Host Gator has been growing at a rapid rate in the last few years. We felt moving to a major metropolitan area was the best way to meet all our staffing and infrastructure needs.”

Host Gator was previously based out of Boca Raton, Florida. A key reason for moving to Houston was the need to attract qualified staff. The high cost of living in Boca Raton discourages the type of young and technically knowledgeable employees Host Gator requires from living in the area. With the new headquarters, the company is already finding the right hires and is in the process of moving all remaining remote workers to Houston, most of who are now willing to relocate due to the more reasonable housing and living costs.

Pictures of the new offices can be seen on Host Gator’s new blog “Gator Crossing”. The blog is designed to provide news and updates on the latest happenings at the company, while giving customers insight into its unique culture.

“The new blog is not a promotional tool, but rather a way for us to reach out and communicate with our valued customers and anyone interested in hosting,” says Oxley. “The Internet has changed how news is distributed, with sites such as Digg.com empowering the community to determine what is considered newsworthy. We hope to use these alternative channels to broaden the reach of our communication efforts.”

Host Gator’s new blog can be found at blog.hostgator.com.

Host Gator is home to 60,000 customers and over 600,000 web sites. The company is planning to introduce Windows-based web hosting in the near future.

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Web Hosting Provider, Eleven2 Hosting, Expands Corporate Management Team

Eleven2 Hosting company, has expanded its corporate management team, through an appointment of a new Customer Service Director, Cory Beavers, a hosting industry veteran.

Mr. Beavers began his career at Yahoo! Web Hosting and was most recently employed by HostGator Web Hosting. Rodney Giles, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Eleven2 noted, ”Cory’s focus will be on increasing the level of support our customers experience here at Eleven2. With Cory’s previous experience at Yahoo! Web Hosting and HostGator Web Hosting, he brings the experience, knowledge, and dedication needed to take our customer support to the next level.”

Cory’s daily tasks include developing and implementing training programs for customer support advocates, enhancing response times on support requests, and improving the quality of responses to customers from the Eleven2 Hosting staff.

Mr. Giles added, ”Cory’s leadership in these areas will help attract customers wanting top-notch customer service at every point of service, from pre-sales to ongoing support, something rarely seen in the hosting industry. When our customers are happy, our retention rates increase and customers start spreading the word about the quality of our hosting and support services.”

In addition to adding a new customer service director, Eleven2 has plans to extend their development team to keep up with the expansion of their upcoming hosting products and services.

Customers can interact with the Eleven2 Hosting team through the company’s VIP platform, a user-friendly control panel for managing billing information, support requests, daily website maintenance, and email.

Recently, Eleven 2 debuted the launch of its iPhone Email Anti-Spam solution, featuring new enhancements to protect iPhone user inboxes and screen out 99.9% of spam emails. The custom-built spam protection combines anti-spam hardware appliances and in-house designed software to filter spam for iPhone email users, improving their user experience and lightening the load on Eleven2 servers. With total sales recently reaching one million, the number of users relying on the iPhone as their primary device for accessing mobile email continues to grow. Spam has the potential to be a major issue in clogging iPhone email inboxes.

Eleven2 has enabled a anti-spam scan engine which uses a layered approach to increase ”kill” rates while at the same time keeping false positives to an absolute minimum. Spam emails are identified through spam signature files and updated rules which are designed around actual identified spam, doing away with guessing and leading to extremely low false positives. Other enhancements include IMAP configurations which were heavily tweaked, redundant inbound mail servers and automated outbound IP address switching to prevent blocked sending of emails.
Eleven2 is looking to roll out additional future enhancements focused on iPhone users in the near future.

Eleven2 Hosting was formed back in early 2004 between two frustrated web developers who simply couldn’t find good hosting options on the Internet. With currently more than 60,000 web sites and years of experience, Eleven2 has become a world-class hosting provider that is here to stay. Eleven2 built and maintains its own state-of-the-art data-center facility and has continuously re-invented itself through the development of their own in-house automated support system.

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