Rackspace Hosting

In 1996, Richard Yoo started a small ISP out of his garage apartment called Cymitar Network Systems in San Antonio, Texas. Quickly, this company began to provide application development work, in addition to basic internet access and web hosting.

New Rackspace Logo

In 1997, Yoo brought on Dirk Elmendorf and the company formally began to develop internet applications as its primary business and a new company was formed called Cymitar Technology Group. As Cymitar Technology Group grew, Patrick Condon was recruited from California and joined the team in 1998. Coincidentally, all three were students at one time at Trinity University in San Antonio.

Although they began as application developers for end-users, they found that most companies did not know how to host their applications, or did not want to be involved in the hosting. They wanted to keep their focus on the application development, not the hosting, but they were unable find an opportunity to outsource the hosting work. Eventually, the three men realized that it would be better to make a product out of the hosting need, and launch it as a company. Rackspace was created and launched in October 1998 with Richard Yoo as its CEO. The beginnings of Rackspaces Fanatical Support started once Rackspace realized that no company at the time could fulfill their unique requirements. Most companies focused on the technology end of hosting, but much less on service and support.

Rackspace received funding through Sequoia Capital.

In January 2008, Rackspace went through a rebranding and changed from, Rackspace Managed Hosting, to simply, Rackspace. The companys tagline became Experience Fanatical Support rather than the older Managed Servers Backed By Fanatical Support. The new logo and service marks keep the same colors as the original logo, but the overall design changed drastically.

Rackspace Hosting

Rackspace is the world’s leader in hosting. We deliver enterprise-level managed services to businesses of all sizes and kinds around the world. Serving more than 31,000 customers in eight data centers worldwide, Rackspace integrates the industry’s best technologies and practices for each customer’s specific need and delivers it as a service via the company’s commitment to Fanatical Support. We serve as an extension of our customers’ IT departments, enabling them to focus on their core business. We got started in 1998 and since then Rackspace has grown more than 50 percent a year. There are currently over 2,000 Rackers around the world serving our customers.

Rackspace Hosting, Inc. (Rackspace Hosting) delivers Websites, Web-based information technology (IT) systems, and computing as a service.

Rackspace is a hosting industry leader with ‘07 revenue of $362m. While the hosting industry is anticipated to grow to $24.4 billion in 2010 from $12.4 billion in 2007 at a 26% CAGR, we anticipate RAX to outpace the industry with a 34% revenue CAGR over the same time period. Rackspace’s customer base is well diversified with no customer accounting for more than 1% of revenue, which enables the company to take advantage of more profitable SME deals and benefit from the continuing outsourcing trend…Down from its $12.50 IPO price, we anticipate near term pressure on the shares as its Feb. 7th lock-up expiration approaches. 121m shares are outstanding, but only about 13% remain sellable; therefore the possibility of insider sales may add additional pressure to the shares. We expect a subsequent rebound in the shares.

Rackspace Clients

Rackspace has clients worldwide, and an EMEA (Europe, Middle-East & Africa) division; which includes offices and data centres in the USA, United Kingdom, The Netherlands and Hong Kong. Rackspace is registered in the UK as Rackspace Ltd., and employs around 400 people, at two offices (in Uxbridge, Middlesex) and three data centres (in and around London) as of 2008. The company opened a fourth UK data centre in Slough, Berkshire in the second quarter of 2008. Rackspace UK has appeared in The Sunday Times best companies awards 2007, and was in the top 50 UK workplaces as seen in the Financial Times.

A few well-known large organisations using Rackspaces UK hosting services include OnSpeed, Confused.com, The Army, Vue, Renault and online publication The Register. Rackspace Benelux in Amsterdam opened its offices in October 2007. It has won several high-profile customers such as LogicaCMG, Exact Software and CapGemini.

What type of person makes for a Great Racker?

Dirk Elmendorf – Co-founder

Dirk Elmendorf is one of the co-founders of Rackspace. Dirk spends time promoting the technology and services that makes Rackspace unique, focusing on the advantages of Rackspace products to industry leaders, customers, technology and business partners. Dirk is also a thought leader at RackLabs where he works on process innovation that will help Rackspace continue to lead the field in service and innovation. Dirk received a B.A. in International Economics from Trinity University.

Dirks’s answers to a series of questions posed to many Rackspace Employees

1. What super power would you like to have?

I thought…Immortality!

But it turns out it isn’t much fun when all your friends die and you have no way to connect with current culture.

Time Travel

However go backward and you risk a paradox. Go forward and you worry about free will. I’ve settled on a simple one. I wish that I had the power to not require any sleep. I would still like to enjoy sleeping; but I wouldn’t have to if I was busy. Can you think of a better gift than a third of your life back?

2. What was your favorite moment at Rackspace?

I got asked to do a 4 hour presentation on on a Geek Cruise—which is where I met my wife.

3. What is your guilty pleasure?

I eat that mashed potato bowl at KFC.

Rackspace Sponsored Celebrity Fan Sites

Napolean Hill	Sophia Loren	Lucille Ball	Constantine the Great
Marilyn Monroe	Jimmy Stewart	Raquel Welsh	James Bond

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