Sphera Corporation, the leading global developer of Web hosting automation and management software, today announced Web.com's 400% increase in hosting sales since deployment of Sphera's HostingBusiness Suite(TM), a comprehensive hosting and management solution comprised of HostingDirector(R) and ResellerDirector(TM). Web.com has experienced accelerated speed and agility in provisioning new customers and significantly reduced support costs.

Web.com was established in 1996 in the domain registration business, and has grown to be one of the most prominent Web hosting providers in the small to medium business market. The company initially developed their own proprietary methodology to administer their hosting provisioning and management. Increased customer demand caused them to pursue an automated hosting solution.

"We spent more time and effort developing provisioning systems than servicing our existing customer base. Time for business development and other strategic activities was nearly impossible to come by," said Will Pemble, CEO of Web.com. "Initially we deployed another hosting automation product but it did not have the features and functionality we needed, nor did they have the technical expertise to help us integrate the systems with our installed base."

Pemble continued, "Then we went through a comprehensive evaluation process with the Sphera solution. We tested it, deployed it, and tried to break it but Sphera's solution continued to react to what we needed. When I finally signed the purchase order, I congratulated Scott Armour of Sphera on becoming one of our vendors. 'We're not your vendor, Will. We're your partner,' Scott told me, and he meant it. We are six months into our partnership with Sphera, and all of our systems are working seamlessly. By switching to Sphera, we have increased our efficiency by an order of magnitude."

With HostingBusiness Suite, Web.com has reduced its new account provisioning time from 24-48 hours down to 35 seconds. Sphera's hosting solution can also send set-up emails, create billing records and add the DNS and domain name registration in a fully automated process. This automation has enabled Web.com to reduce network operations, technical and billing staff requirements by 50%. Web.com has also become more competitive, passing on savings to their customers while increasing valuable features and services.

"To survive, shared hosting providers have no choice but to automate and scale their core backend operations," said Helen Chan, Senior Analyst, the Yankee Group. "It's critical for providers to select the right hosting automation software to address and reliably support their companies' specific needs. By listening to both hosting providers and resellers, Sphera is well- positioned in this software space utilizing HostingBusiness Suite to help its customers run more efficiently and generate additional revenues from value- added services."

"Sphera put us back in the driver's seat, plain and simple. We've grown our retail business by more than 400% with HostingDirector. We'll be launching the Web.com Reseller Network with Sphera's ResellerDirector in Q2 and delivering that many more benefits to our customers," said Pemble.

About Sphera

Sphera Corporation is a global leader in Web hosting automation and management software. Sphera provides value to hosting providers and resellers through service differentiation, increased operational efficiencies, enhanced customer satisfaction and increased profitability. Sphera's HostingBusiness Suite, which includes HostingDirector and ResellerDirector, delivers immediate ROI by generating new revenue opportunities, slashing costs and winning customer loyalty. Headquartered in Newton, MA, with EMEA offices in London, Sphera is backed by well-established global venture capital firms including JVP, TLcom Capital Partners, Gemini Israel Funds, Vision Capital, Bank of America, and Reuters Greenhouse Fund. For more information, visit www.sphera.com, or call 1-866-SPHERA-1.