TMCnet News
The Planet and HostGator Advance Strategic PartnershipHOUSTON --(Business Wire)-- The Planet, now the world's largest privately held dedicated hosting company, and HostGator, a leading shared hosting provider, today extended their strategic business relationship with the signing of the largest customer transaction in the history of the two companies. Through the terms of the agreement, HostGator will lease more than 1,700 additional servers in The Planet's Houston and Dallas data centers, essentially doubling its server portfolio. Approximately one-third of the new servers will be provisioned and ready to use this week. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "For the past five years, HostGator has continued a steady growth trajectory with The Planet as our hosting provider," said HostGator President and Founder Brent Oxley. "Starting with three servers - and now with many more - we have relied on The Planet for its reliability, scalability, bandwidth and service, which we believe is the best in the business. We have built our business based on service and one-on-one relationships with our customers, which is the hallmark of our success." "Brent Oxley has built a business that clearly mirrors the American dream," said The Planet's Chairman and CEO Douglas J. Erwin. "Through a consultative review, our team evaluated the HostGator product portfolio to augment his server offerings and to scale his business for growth. Great companies are measured by the success of their customers, and we are proud that HostGator chooses The Planet as its on demand IT infrastructure provider." HostGator: An American Success Story In 2002 as a college freshman, Brent Oxley started his Web hosting business. With less than $1,000 in his bank account, he leased two dedicated servers to begin the HostGator operation. Soon after, Oxley began leaving classes to take customer support calls. With more than 100 customers acquired in his first year, Oxley's constant companion was his cell phone. At any hour of the night he was on-the-ready to help customers who placed their confidence in his company. In his second year of operation, with more than 1,000 customers, Oxley recognized that he had a burgeoning business and began hiring a team to support his growth. By any measure, HostGator's growth trajectory is phenomenal. Today, Oxley's company hosts more than 500,000 Web sites, with 2006 revenue exceeding $11 million. His commitment to customers has paid off handsomely. With a recent move of his headquarters to Houston from Boca Raton, Florida, the company also has opened a new Canadian office in Toronto. With more than 80 employees, Oxley remains front-and-center with customers. His attributes his open, direct approach to the fact that he grew his business by growing with their businesses. Oxley maintains that by continuing to work support tickets and to speak with customers when they request, it keeps him current on emerging business issues. "We stand behind our commitment to customers and always have someone on our team available to help 24/7," he notes. "Our customers deserve the best, and we work to deliver on our promise of solid service and reliability." About HostGator HostGator is a privately owned company founded in 2002 that has no debt, is very profitable, and has NO intentions of selling any time soon. We provide service to over 500,000 websites on our shared and reseller plans. We are the world's leading provider of reseller accounts with over 10,000 resellers who have chosen us to provide the network, servers, and support required to launch a hosting business. About The Planet The Planet is the leading provider of On Demand IT Infrastructure solutions, hosting more than 22,000 small- and medium-size businesses and 2.8 million Web sites worldwide. By offering the best choice of servers, software tools and world-class support, backed by state-of-the-art facilities and unmatched network connectivity, The Planet helps turn information technology into a powerful competitive advantage that enables customers to successfully grow their businesses. For additional information, visit www.theplanet.com. |
