Largest Chinese Hosting Provider HiChina Launches VPS Services Using SWsoft Virtuozzo Virtualization Software

November 20, 2006; 05:25 AM

BEJING and HERNDON, Va. – More than 30 hosting providers in China – including the largest, HiChina -- have launched Virtual Private Server (VPS) services in the last six months using Virtuozzo virtualization software from SWsoft, a recognized leader in server automation and virtualization software.

There are approximately 2.95 million domain names in China and slightly more than 788,000 active web sites. With a population of 13 billion and only 123 million people wired in China, hosting services are a high-growth segment of the emerging Internet economy.1

“Internet addresses, dedicated servers and VPSs are very rare in China and, as a result, the costs are much higher as compared with Europe and the United States,” said Silen Zhang, CEO, SWsoft China. “Virtuozzo operating system-level technology provides a cost-efficient alternative that enables VPS hosters like HiChina to provide better customer service and tap into the needs of one of the fastest growing segments in China -- small-to-medium size businesses.”

According to analyst IDC, worldwide industry sales of virtualization software topped $560 million in 2005 and are expected to grow to $15 billion by 2009. Virtuozzo is growing fastest among all vendors -- 98 percent -- in the market for virtualization technology.²

Because dedicated servers are expensive in China, hosting providers need solutions that maximize server resources with minimal downtime and costs. Virtuozzo virtualization technology creates multiple, isolated virtual environments on a single physical server to share hardware, licenses and management effort.

About HiChina
Founded in 1996, HiChina is the flagship in the Chinese internet service industry.  HiChina develops e-infrastructure with advanced technologies in high performance virtual servers and e-commerce platforms to help corporate clients set up websites with minimal investment. With its highly automated server platform, HiChina has helped customers register over 600,000 domain names and serves more than 100,000 enterprise users with fast, stable and secure websites and email hosting services. HiChina has server facilities located in eight places around the world and plays a significant role in helping China’s enterprises grasp the opportunity of the internet economy. For more information on HiChina, visit www.net.cn.

About SWsoft
SWsoft is a recognized leader in server automation and virtualization software. With more than 10,000 customers in over 100 countries, SWsoft's suite of award-winning products delivers proven performance, manageability and value. SWsoft is a high-growth company funded by Bessemer Venture Partners, Insight Venture Partners and Intel Capital. For more information about SWsoft, visit www.swsoft.com.

1- China Internet Network Information Center, “18^th Statistical Survey Report on the Internet Development in China,” July 2006.
2 - IDC Report, "Worldwide Virtual Machine Software 2005 Vendor Shares, September 2006.