Rackspace Advances Channel Offering for Cloud Computing Software Applications

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rackspace® Hosting (NYSE:RAX), a leader in hosting and cloud computing, today announced at its Rackspace Email & Apps Reseller Conference that the cloud-based applications division has plans to restructure its reseller program, which will emphasize the company’s commitment to channel partners through increased revenue opportunities, new training and marketing resources, and an expanded product portfolio. The announcement parallels recent updates from Rackspace to boost partner programs for Managed Services and The Rackspace Cloud to aggressively grow the company’s presence in the channel.

Rackspace has seen significant growth in the hosted email and applications channel, nearly doubling the number of resellers in the last year, and prompting the first Email & Apps Reseller Conference this week in Atlanta, Ga. The new plans for the Email & Apps channel program provide resellers more opportunity for recurring revenue, a tiered structure with mounting benefits to reward growth, the ability to set prices and margins, and additional marketing and training resources to help channel partners grow their businesses.

To support this new approach Rackspace has also already begun investing in training and marketing resources for channel partners, providing new white-labeled collateral that partners can brand and use for their marketing campaigns. Resellers also have access to monthly sales force training, educational webinars and materials, and Rackspace’s ongoing commitment to Fanatical Support®.

“We see expansion into vertical markets as a big opportunity for the Rackspace cloud computing business,” said Pat Matthews, GM of the Rackspace Email & Apps division. “We really believe in our channel partner strategy and our partners who already possess the expertise and networks to best represent our offerings in these markets. In exchange, we are striving to offer our partners every competitive advantage and revenue opportunity, whether it’s new products, high quality marketing resources, or providing the Fanatical Support they need to succeed.”

In the last six months, Rackspace has introduced several new products that present resellers with more opportunity than ever to increase revenue through existing customer up sells and bundled solutions. In addition to its proprietary Rackspace Email platform, hosted Microsoft Exchange, and mobile solutions, Rackspace now offers Email Archiving, hosted Microsoft SharePoint, and expected to come soon for resellers, Rackspace Cloud Drive and Server Backup.

In addition to the expanded product portfolio, resellers choose Rackspace Email & Apps for its unique offerings and benefits, including:

* Fanatical Support® – Access to Rackspace live support teams 24x7x365
* Reseller Control Panel – Easily manage all customer accounts from one dashboard
* Exchange Hybrid – Combination of Exchange and Rackspace Email on a single domain reduces customer costs and provides a unique selling point
* Integration Options – Documented APIs for Rackspace Email and hosted Microsoft Exchange
* Personalized Branding – Resellers have the ability to brand their customer’s control panel, webmail interface, support documents, and marketing and sales literature

“Our customers trust us with their online business operations, including email. We must have a partner with a reliable platform,” said Darryl Parker, CEO of Parker Web Services. “Rackspace is that partner. Their product mix and scalability have allowed us to grow our company, take on more clients, and add more revenue.”

Learn how your organization can become a Rackspace Email & Apps partner or how current partners can expand their offerings by visiting the Rackspace Email & Apps website.

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