There are rumors going around on the Internet that YouTube wants to better invade your living room. You can already access YouTube videos through different media players and home theater PC setups, but it seems that Google wants to have even better penetration, possibly beating out a traditional TV subscription.

As the rumor goes, consumers will get a set top box that is connected to their YouTube account. YouTube tracks the kinds of videos you and your friends enjoy, creating a “random” playlist that fits in with these interests. The playlist is then streamed to the set top box in the living room, continually moving from one video to the next with little to no user interaction. This mimics the experience of watching traditional television, but in shorter clips.

So, what does this have to do with marketing? Should this idea truly take off, it is very well possible that YouTube could start offering advertising opportunities among these generated playlists. Advertisers could buy 30 second spots to insert their videos, not unlike television commercials through the conventional channels. Executed successfully, this could prove to be a major revenue source for YouTube and Google.

What do you think? From both a consumer and an advertiser’s point of view, would sponsored videos among your streamed playlist be a good thing or a bad thing overall?

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(The Hosting News) – VertexHost, a leading professional Internet solutions provider specializing in MySQL optimized hosting services, has chosen VegasNAP, Las Vegas’ Premier Datacenter, for expansion of its hosting services. With this commitment, VertexHost will be able to extend its multiple-tiered services with VegasNAP’s 14,000 square foot facility that includes a 6,500 square foot conditioned datacenter, 24/7 onsite technical support, fully supplied technical stations, highest quality UPS and standby generator systems and top-grade security systems.

“We feel that VegasNAP is a top-notch facility with a fantastic infrastructure. When choosing a facility we took a lot of things into consideration, including location, power, cooling, network, security and even the helpfulness of the staff. It was clear that VegasNAP was going to be the right facility for us and since moving in they have exceeded our expectations on all fronts. We are already working with VegasNAP management to plan the next phase of our growth at their facility and look forward to being there for many years to come,” explains Billy Cooter, Managing Partner, VertexHost.com.

Rob Tyree, VegasNAP VP and CTO added, “We welcome Mr. Cooter of VertexHost as the latest web hosting provider to use our facilities, and look forward to a long, personal relationship with his company.”

Tyree explains that the rapid growth in clientele is on par to the initial schedule planned and will allow for more expansion of the datacenter as services are needed. A build out of their power and HVAC systems is already underway to keep ahead of the demand expected over the next two quarters.

VertexHost selects VegasNAP for Mission Critical Colocation Services

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(The Hosting News) - ServInt, a pioneering provider of managed web hosting for businesses worldwide, today announced its Chief Operating Officer Christian Dawson will be a featured speaker at HostingCon 2010 in Austin, Texas July 19th at 10 a.m. Dawson’s session will examine how virtualization and superior customer service will shape the future of the global hosting industry.

“Savvy technology integration and a commitment to long-term customer relationships will be the keys to prosperity in our industry,” Dawson said. “As one of the world’s most prominent web hosts since 1995, we are the first to notice the extent to which customer demands are changing. Mega-hosts too often try to meet bandwidth demands through technology and price alone, without adequately focusing on two-way, long-term customer relationships.”

Dawson’s presentation will outline how progressive web hosts can use virtualization and personal, customer-oriented hosting services to gain market share and ensure long-term growth.

“As the market evolves, small-scale innovation will be rewarded. The most innovative hosts will combine the latest VPS solutions with a willingness to tackle harder problems on a more personal basis. At the same time, effective VPS solutions will provide critical power to large-scale sites, while maximizing scalability, boosting energy efficiency and minimizing environmental impact.”

To read Dawson’s daily blog postings from HostingCon 2010, visit The ServInt Source at http://blog.servint.net.

About HostingCon

HostingCon is the premier conference and trade show for the hosted services industry. HostingCon is celebrating its sixth anniversary, with a projected attendance of more than 1,500 Internet professionals from over 30 countries. For more information, visit www.hostingcon.com.

About ServInt

ServInt is a pioneering provider of high-reliability, managed web hosting for businesses worldwide. ServInt’s commitment to Green IT services is demonstrated by its award-winning Virtual Private Server (VPS) solutions. ServInt was founded in Northern Virginia in 1995 as one of the first web-hosting companies to offer a Managed Dedicated Server solution. From multiple world-class data centers, ServInt now provides its scalable suite of VPS and Managed Enterprise Server packages to thousands of customers in more than 60 countries. To learn more about ServInt hosting solutions, please call 1-800-573-7846 or visit www.servint.net.

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ServInt COO to Speak at HostingCon 2010

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(The Hosting News) – Virpus Networks, Inc, a leader in budget VPS Hosting announces the continuation of its a la carte VPS service – VirtuPulse.com.

In March of 2006, Virpus launched GetAVPS.com – the very first VPS customization service offered on the market at that time. Today, the brand has died off, however with the release of VirtuPulse, Virpus hopes to bring back to light its VPS customization services it has offered since near inception.

“Over time, we lost focus of GetAVPS.com, and allowed it to die off. With more and more demand for customized solutions, we figured it was time to re-launch this service, under a new name and more aggressive pricing” says Kenneth Odem, the co-founder and Chief Executive of Virpus Networks, Inc – originally founded in Indianapolis, Indiana.

About Virpus Networks, Inc.

Founded in February of 2006 by Kenneth Odem, Virpus Networks is a leading provider in virtualized solutions. Virpus Networks today is a sustaining profitable company, that has the mission of providing business grade solutions at highly competitive price points with hundreds of customers from all across the globe.

Virpus announces the launch of VirtuPulse -a full a la carte VPS service

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(The Hosting News)  – The Planet, the global hosting leader, today announced that Chairman and CEO Douglas J. Erwin will be a featured speaker on two conference panels at HostingCon 2010, which takes place July 19-21 in Austin, Texas. Web Hosting Evangelist Kevin Hazard will also participate in a panel on social media.

Erwin’s first appearance will be at the conference track titled, “Adding Value to Your Business With Financial and Operating Metrics,” scheduled for Monday, July 19, at 9 a.m. CDT. Erwin joins executives from Endurance International, SingleHop, Corelink Data Centers and Cheval Capital in discussing methods used to track business and create value. The session will be moderated by hosting legal expert David Snead.

Erwin’s second panel takes place later that day at 1 p.m., titled, “Opportunities and Advantages for Hosting Resellers.” Moderated by Liam Eagle, editor of the Web Host Industry Review, Erwin will join executives from Tucows and A Small Orange to share perspectives on reselling hosting services, including how to optimize business operations through partnerships and new technologies, such as the cloud.

On the second day of the conference, Hazard will participate in a panel that examines how hosting companies can best utilize social media marketing to drive brand awareness, gain feedback and ultimately increase profits. The session, titled “Optimizing Social Media for Branding, Traffic and Sales,” is slated for July 20 at 9 a.m. and includes social media experts from NameDynamics, Resolution Media and Appbistro.com.

The Planet is a silver sponsor of the conference, and will showcase its hosting and cloud solutions at booth 124 of the expo. There, the company will continue its popular Server Challenge, which tasks conference attendees to post the fastest time in correctly rebuilding a server. Giveaways will include an Asus Eee PC netbook and a Flip video camcorder. The Planet is also running show specials, with discounts on various hosting and cloud solutions available to those who visit the booth.
For more information on The Planet at HostingCon, visit http://www.theplanet.com/events.

About The Planet
The Planet is the leading provider of On Demand IT Infrastructure solutions, hosting more than 18,000 small- and medium-size businesses and 12 million Web sites worldwide. Customers have the power to choose from the broadest range of hosting solutions in the industry, from dedicated servers, Managed Dedicated Servers, Managed Hosting and data center colocation, all backed by 24×7×365 support. With the best choice of servers, software tools and world-class service, backed by state-of-the-art data centers and an enterprise-class network, The Planet turns IT into a powerful competitive advantage that enables customers to grow their businesses. For additional information, visit http://www.theplanet.com.

The Planet Participates as Silver Sponsor at HostingCon 2010

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(The Hosting News) – Layered Technologies, Inc. (Layered Tech), a leading worldwide provider of on-demand and cloud computing IT infrastructure, today announced that it will provide KANA Software, Inc., with virtual private data centers (VPDCs), managed services and disaster recovery solutions to support KANA’s enterprise customers worldwide. KANA’s solutions help many of the world’s largest companies manage their customer service experiences. KANA chose Layered Tech to deliver hosted infrastructure for its customers worldwide because of Layered Tech’s strong global presence, flexibility and highly scalable services.

“It was essential that we find an infrastructure provider capable of supporting KANA’s growth on both sides of the Atlantic, while providing the cloud infrastructure required to meet our customers’ highest security and disaster recovery requirements. We chose Layered Tech because they are the only provider with both the expertise and internationally based data centers needed to provide our clients with customer service applications on highly scalable and reliable infrastructure,” said Stuart Mills, vice president of International Global Consulting at KANA. “Layered Tech engineers worked closely with KANA to ensure a seamless transition to their VPDC, and this allowed us to more quickly realize the benefits of this relationship. For example, we have already shortened our time-to-market, which drives more revenue on an annualized basis.”

KANA delivers comprehensive customer service experience management to more than 600 clients worldwide, including more than half of the Fortune 100 companies. KANA offers both end-to-end managed hosted solutions for customers that need application management and a fully secure IT environment, as well as on-premise hosting for customers that prefer to have KANA solutions managed on their own infrastructure. With Layered Tech’s VPDC, KANA customers of all sizes can easily scale up or down depending on their customer service demands.

“Layered Tech customized their managed services offering to supplement the areas where we need help, blending our skill sets with theirs. Layered Tech is a great fit with KANA because they understand our unique business needs and are very comfortable creating custom solutions to meet our precise requirements,” said Mills. “Layered Tech’s commitment to providing us with personalized service exceeded our expectations and continues to free us to focus on our own customers and business rather than the computing infrastructure supporting us.”

“Working with a customer of KANA’s size, scope and reputation is rewarding, and we look forward to providing the infrastructure and services that complements their business strategy,” said Todd Abrams, president and founder of Layered Tech. “Our flexibility, enterprise expertise and global data centers combine to deliver the scalability and business continuity that KANA needs to serve its customers, including half of the world’s 100 largest companies.”

About KANA Software, Inc.
KANA, the leader in Service Experience Management, provides solutions that deliver a customer-focused service experience that successfully balances customer interests with business goals. Service Experience Management uniquely unifies business process, case and knowledge management for customer service organizations. It leverages KANA’s expertise in delivering consistent service across all communication channels, including email, chat, call centers, and Web self-service. KANA’s Service Experience Management solutions allow companies to control every step within each customer interaction to deliver the ideal service experience. KANA’s clients report double-digit increases in customer satisfaction, increased revenue growth while reducing contact center costs by an average of 20 percent. KANA’s award-winning solutions are proven in more than 600 companies worldwide, including approximately half of the world’s largest 100 companies. For more information, visit http://www.KANA.com.

About Layered Technologies
Layered Technologies is a leading global provider of managed dedicated hosting, on-demand virtualization/cloud computing and Web services. By providing high-quality technology, infrastructure and support, Layered Tech enables customers to eliminate capital expenses and save on operating costs while focusing on core business issues. Layered Tech’s scalable infrastructure powers millions of sites and Internet-enabled applications including e-commerce and software as a service (SaaS). Our clients range from leading-edge Web 2.0 startups, successful mid-sized enterprises and some of the world’s largest consultancy and integration firms. For more information about Layered Technologies, please visit www.LayeredTech.com or call 1-866-584-6784.

Global CRM Provider Chooses Layered Tech’s Cloud Computing Infrastructure

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http://www.gawkwire.com/web_hosting/black_lotus_announces_platinum_sponsorship_at_hostingcon_2010.html

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Search engine optimization is a very important whether you are running a small blog or you are trying to promote your business website. If you have WordPress as your chosen content management system, you also have access to a wide range of plugins and customizations that can aid you in this effort.

An oldie but a goodie in this realm is SEO Slugs. This WordPress plug-in accomplishes one very simple task, but it does it very well. In short, it shortens the “post slug” portion of your URI, removing superfluous words. This generates a shorter URI and one that is more easily indexed by search engines like Google.

The example used in the plug-in main page has a blog post called “What You Can Do Immediately For Higher Rankings.” If left at default, the post slug in WordPress would be “/what-you-can-do-immediately-for-higher-rankings”. By using the plugin, the slug is automatically shortened to “/immediately-higher-rankings.” That’s shorter and more efficient.

For more information and to download SEO Slugs, head over to vretoolbar.com.

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