Rackspace Europe attains Gold Partner Status in Microsoft Partner Programme

Rackspace Managed Hosting Europe today announced it has attained Gold Certified status in the Microsoft Partner Programme with competencies in Advanced Infrastructure Solutions and Networking Infrastructure Solutions, recognising Rackspace Europe’s expertise and total impact in the technology marketplace. As a Gold Certified partner, Rackspace has demonstrated expertise with Microsoft technologies and proven its ability to meet customers’ unique business needs in web hosting. Microsoft Gold Certified Partners receive a rich set of benefits, including access, training and support, giving them a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

This means that Rackspace (http://www.rackspace.co.uk ) Europe can now join its US parent company in holding the accreditation in its own right. The strong business growth of Rackspace within Europe enabled it to qualify for the award without the need to rely on the rest of its worldwide business to help fulfill the criteria. As the fastest growing managed hosting company in the UK, Rackspace believes that its success is due to its unique brand of customer service – Fanatical Support (http://www.rackspace.co.uk/support/ ). Delivery of service excellence has been core to Rackspace’s European operations since its inception in 2001. Over this time the company has grown from four people to 180 with more than 2500 customers.

Jacques Greyling, managing director at Rackspace Managed Hosting (http://www.rackspace.co.uk/solutions/ ), said: “This certification demonstrates the impact we have made in the web hosting industry with our complete devotion to customer service and depth of technical expertise. Fanatical Support permeates every element of our business and it really is a way of life for every employee at Rackspace. We have experienced phenomenal success in the past four years and the Microsoft certification will add to the significant momentum we have built in this time, particularly as we continue to grow our enterprise business in the coming year.”

Karl Noakes, Director of the Partner Development and Marketing Group at Microsoft said: “Congratulations to Rackspace on Gold Certified Partner status. By achieving expertise via the Microsoft Partner Programmes’ Competencies, our Partners are making a clear commitment to enhancing their capabilities. I’m delighted, not only as this ensures due diligence for our customers, but also because recent IDC research found that Partners who achieve multiple Competencies see a financial ROI.”

As one of the requirements for attaining Gold Certified Partner Status, Rackspace Europe had to declare a Microsoft Competency. Microsoft Competencies are designed to help differentiate a partner’s capabilities with specific Microsoft technologies (http://www.rackspace.co.uk/managedwindows/ ) to customers looking for a particular type of solution. Each competency has a unique set of requirements and benefits, formulated to accurately represent the specific skills and services that partners bring to the technology industry.

Rackspace’s Competency in Advanced Infrastructure Solutions was awarded on the basis of is proven expertise in designing and implementing complex infrastructure solutions. Its Networking Infrastructure Solutions Competency was awarded on the basis of its proven expertise in implementing technology based on Microsoft Windows 2003 operating systems.

The Microsoft Partner Programme was launched in December 2003 and represents Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to the success of partners worldwide. The program offers a single integrated partnering framework that recognises partner expertise, rewards the total impact that partners have in the technology marketplace, and delivers more value to help partners’ businesses be successful.

Notes to editors

About Rackspace Managed Hosting:
A recognised leader in the global managed hosting market, Rackspace Managed Hosting is a world-class service organisation delivering enterprise-level Web infrastructure and managed services to businesses of all sizes. Serving more than 10,000 customers across six data centres worldwide, Rackspace integrates the industry’s best technologies for each customer’s need and delivers 100 per cent network availability. Founded in 1998, the company has received numerous awards for its brand of customer service known as Fanatical Support including the Unisys/Management Today 2005 Service Excellence Award.

For more information, visit the Rackspace (http://www.rackspace.co.uk ) website or call 0800 085 3973.

For further information contact:
Sally Robards or James Mitchell Kaizo
Tel: 020 7580 8852
Email: rackspace@kaizo.net

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