RampRate LLC, a trusted technology advisor for hosting and Internet services, today announced that it has stepped up its efforts to bring together multiple service partners to deliver hassle-free migration solutions -- and thereby help companies hard hit by the ongoing crisis in the Internet hosting market.

RampRate's mandate -- to identify and weave together disparate, best-of- breed infrastructure technologies -- facilitates rapid migration from Web hosting companies that have abruptly left the business, to other established, stable service providers. In recent weeks, the Web hosting market has been rocked by the sudden departure of some of the industry's biggest players, as Metromedia Fiber (MFN) filed for bankruptcy, LoudCloud sold its hosting business to EDS, and Intel summarily exited the space. Given the continuing financial woes of WorldCom and telecom provider QWEST, concerns remain that the worst may not be over.

RampRate has pinpointed and partnered with vendors in domain management, content delivery network, disaster recovery and storage, among others. Collectively, these vendors provide migration solutions that enable companies at risk to make smooth transitions in a compressed time period, reducing or eliminating downtime and loss of revenue.

"If there was ever a time for triage in this market, that time is now," said Tony Greenberg, CEO, RampRate. "Customers are grappling with technically inferior solutions and wanting to leave service providers because of the radical change in marketplace. Everyone is facing a shortage of people and time. When a company finds itself in triage mode, the anxiety level rises and people tend to make quick decisions that may be more subjective than sound. Our data-driven sourcing matrix returns objectivity to the equation, backed by our knowledge of the marketplace and dedicated to taking the pain out of moving."

In association with its research partner Tier 1, RampRate relies on its exclusive SPY (Service Provider Intelligence) Index(TM) as the backbone of its sourcing matrix. SPY is a multi-dimensional analysis of each of its vendor partners, enabling the company to ensure objective matching of its clients' needs and vendors' capabilities. Working in conjunction its vendor partners, RampRate monitors each of its providers' performance and status by looking at variables that include: network and data center infrastructure/integrity; staff expertise/buildout; brand fit; financial health; customer experience; reporting architectures; SLA flexibility; and actual pricing. RampRate is a member of the Managed Services Providers Association.

"We've looked at the bottlenecks in migration and worked with our partners to overcome them," he said. "We understand IP allotment and configuration, and URL/domain migration. We know the legal ramifications of these transitions, and we've pre-negotiated service-level agreements, so the process can move forward expeditiously. The market is consolidating, but there is still an abundance of financially sound players and the environment remains highly competitive, which will continue to tilt the economics toward a buyer's market.

"Domain migration in particular can be a nightmare without the ability to quickly propagate this critical information," Greenberg added. "We connect companies seeking network relocation with providers that offer domain migration assistance and ongoing carrier-class support. Companies can migrate their domains with total confidence, and have these changes propagated throughout the Internet in near-real time."

About RampRate
Based in Santa Monica, Calif. and with offices in San Francisco, New York and Toronto, RampRate ( http://www.ramprate.com/ ) is a next-generation technology advisor, managing negotiations for hosting and co-location, content delivery, streaming media, managed and professional services, content asset management, peer to peer, bandwidth and quality of service (QoS) tools. More than 100 best-of-breed service providers (companies like IBM and AT&T) accelerate their sales channels in partnership with RampRate, to help clients (like Microsoft, Miramax, iFilm, Sony Music, Intertainer, NHL, CBSnews.com and Virgin) make intelligent data-driven sourcing decisions.

RampRate services typically are free to the client. Partnered with leading market research firm Tier 1 Research and other research organizations, RampRate has developed its Service Provider Intelligence (SPY) Index, a proprietary measurement tool that weighs 35 factors including financial, technical, performance, client testimonials, value, brand, reporting, contract flexibility, and SLA issues. The result is a data-driven, written recommendation that helps conclude negotiations between client and provider. RampRate thereby simplifies the way infrastructure services are purchased, saving companies time and money, and instilling confidence that they have chosen the right vendors at the right price. RampRate can be reached at 310/319-1599.