OpenSRS Web Hosting Industry Survey: Resellers Missing Opportunity with Social Network Users

August 25, 2008; 08:33 AM

Toronto, August 25, 2008 - Tucows Inc., (AMEX:TCX, TSX:TC) a leading provider of Internet services to Web hosting companies and ISPs worldwide, announced today the results of an industry survey conducted by its reseller services group OpenSRS at the HostingCon 2008 conference in Chicago last month. Survey findings revealed resellers of email and domain names are missing significant business opportunities to tap into social network users.
 
Of the respondents, 60 percent have their own blog or personal Web site, and nearly three-fourths use social networks like Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, Twitter and FriendFeed to share information with friends and family. Despite the majority of people using social networking services, 81percent of the respondents in the Web hosting industry do not believe these “Web 2.0” or functional-hosting businesses could hurt their business.
 
“While the Web hosting industry does not view social networks as a threat to its business, people are going to functional-hosts for services that allow them to share information online. This demonstrates that there are opportunities for Web hosts to tap into consumers who embrace social networks – but these opportunities are being overlooked by the very industry that knows the Internet best,” said Ken Schafer, Vice President of Product Management and Marketing for Tucows. “It’s important that as the Web hosting industry moves forward, we understand that Internet users are seeking a customized, personalized, Internet experience for both personal and professional reasons. Ultimately, it’s about customer relationships. Providers and resellers need to work together to provide the support, services and infrastructure that give users the best experience.”
 
Other results of the survey revealed that 73 percent of all domain name resellers enjoy working with their provider. In addition, three-fourths of domain name resellers believe their provider understands its needs and nearly one-half have no complaints with their provider, but of those that did, the top complaints were poor communication or support and lack of the full range of services their customers want.
 
“It’s always great to receive positive feedback from the industry – OpenSRS has made a strong commitment to our reseller community because they have been incredibly supportive of us. By making it easy to sell and manage the highest quality Internet services, we give our resellers the tools they need to be successful,” added Schafer.
 
In 1999, Tucows became the first domain name wholesaler to be accredited by ICANN and chose the name OpenSRS for its domain name service. Recently relaunched to celebrate its resellers’ sustained loyalty, OpenSRS today remains one of the world’s largest wholesale domain registrars as well as the most reseller-friendly, and has expanded its offerings to include hosted email and SSL certificates. OpenSRS has grown steadily each year and today boasts over 9,000 active resellers on six continents. Those resellers, in turn, have the potential to reach millions of end users.
 
About OpenSRS
OpenSRS is a global provider of wholesale Internet services to Web hosting companies and ISPs.  Wholly owned by Tucows, Inc., OpenSRS provides wholesale services for hosted email, domain name registration, Personal Names, and SSL certificates. For more information, please visit http://opensrs.com.

About Tucows
Tucows provides Internet services for Web hosting companies and ISPs. Through our global network of over 9,000 service providers our OpenSRS group provides millions of email boxes and manages over eight million domains. Tucows is an accredited registrar with ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers). We hold a domain name portfolio of approximately 150,000 domain names that are available for sale, monetized through advertising and support our wholesale Personal Names Service. Our Retail division sells Tucows services to consumers and small business owners through Domain Direct, IYD (It's Your Domain) and NetIdentity. Tucows.com remains one of the most popular software download sites on the Internet. For more information please visit: http://tucowsinc.com.