GoDaddy.com to Migrate Entire Hostname Portfolio Onto Microsoft Solution for Windows-Based Hosting

Go Daddy to transition all its parked domains from Linux to Microsoft.

REDMOND, Wash. — March 21, 2006 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that GoDaddy.com®, the world’s leading domain name registrar, is transitioning approximately 4.5 million Web domains to be hosted on the Microsoft® Solution for Windows®-based Hosting. Upon completion of the migration, Go Daddy® will have moved all its parked domains from Linux to the Windows platform.

“Our business is based on providing the best possible service at the lowest possible price. This strategy requires us to maximize all of our resources, particularly our technology assets,” said Warren Adelman, GoDaddy.com president and COO. “It was clear from all of the testing we’ve conducted that Microsoft provides an efficient and scalable operating platform, while also providing the performance needed to handle our extraordinary growth.”

GoDaddy.com, known for its competitively priced, service-packed product offerings and high levels of customer service, is the world’s No. 1 domain name registrar, both in terms of new registrations and domains under management. The company annually ranks as one of the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the country and has done so by offering consumers and small and medium-sized businesses a diverse range of Web hosting products and services that simplify the creation and management of their online presence.

The Microsoft Solution for Windows-based Hosting supports GoDaddy.com’s low-cost, high-value strategy by providing a technology platform that is security-enhanced, highly scalable and easy to manage. Further, through a growing ecosystem of independent software vendors (ISVs) creating applications based on the Microsoft Solution for Windows-based Hosting, GoDaddy.com can introduce new services to its customers easily and cost-effectively. As an example, Go Daddy recently created delivery applications for both DotNetNuke and Telligent Systems’ Community Server that give Windows-based hosters the ability to create dynamic Web-based applications that seamlessly integrate with their hosting accounts. In addition, Go Daddy recently developed and deployed its Quick Blog tool that permits the aggregation of bloggers in one large Windows-based application, giving each blogger a unique domain.

“Microsoft solutions for the Web hosting industry have continued to gain traction in the market over the past several years. Go Daddy’s decision to migrate its domains to the Windows platform is a significant validation point of our strategy,” said Pascal Martin, general manager of Worldwide Hosting at Microsoft. “The industry has reached a point where Web hosting providers must rapidly deploy new high-value services, while simultaneously reducing operating costs in order to compete. Microsoft along with its ecosystem of partners provides the solutions to help hosters fulfill both goals.”

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

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