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CNN, Go Network, and ABOUT.COM among 20 Top Web Sites Selecting Akamai for Guaranteed Internet Content Delivery
CAMBRIDGE, MA, June 16, 1999 --- Akamai Technologies, which operates the world's only 100% guaranteed network for Internet content delivery, announced today that over 20 major Web sites have become charter customers of the company's first offering, FreeFlow. FreeFlow SM has been in commercial use since the beginning of April and to date has delivered more than 20 billion hits for properties such as the CNN Web sites, GO Network TM, and About.com. The service dramatically improves Web site performance and reliability, and is backed by Akamai's unparalleled Proof of Performance guarantee.
"Akamai is pumping out images and graphics for the CNN Web sites with high speed, creating headroom for us to serve an average of 23 million page impressions each week day," said Monty Mullig, vice president of CNN Internet Technologies. "In addition to enhancing our everyday capacity, FreeFlow is improving our overall site performance."
Another leading company that has chosen Akamai's service is Infoseek Corporation, the home of GO Network. According to David Chamberlain, CIO of Infoseek Corporation, "Akamai made March Madness a very sane event for us, and its peak crowd protection allowed us to serve record numbers of requests for media-rich, real-time information to college basketball fans around the world."
Akamai also delivers content for About.com, a leading Internet media company. 'About.com helps people get the most out of the Net by providing highly-relevant content from hundreds of expert guides via our network of destination sites," explained Sara Plath, director, Hosting Operations for About.com. "Akamai allows us to provide a better experience for our visitors by ensuring we always have plenty of serving capacity. Akamai's service is well thought out and easy to use."
In addition to the CNN Web sites, Infoseek Corporation, GO Network, and About.com, other major businesses that are working with Akamai include new media companies, eCommerce firms, and financial Web sites. Yahoo!, a leading global Internet media company, which already uses FreeFlow, has extended its relationship to include the Yahoo! GeoCities community services. In addition, the other companies signing up for FreeFlow within its first three months of availability are, in alphabetical order:
CCBN.com, the Corporate Communications Broadcast Network, providing a comprehensive, turnkey solution for public companies to enhance the Investor Relations section of their corporate Web sites;
Discovery Enterprises Worldwide, which enables Internet users to explore their world via discovery.com;
Furniture.com, the e-commerce leader revolutionizing the way people shop for furniture;
Gomez.com, the eCommerce Authority;
Hard Rock Hotel, which offers resort information including virtual tours and entertainment schedules;
Homeportfolio.com, the leading Internet destination for premium home design products;
Companies from idealab!, the Pasadena, California-based Internet incubator;
J.Crew.com, a full-service eCommerce apparel site;
Looksmart, a leading, independent portal with over 900,000 unique URLs - the largest collection of editorially reviewed and categorized sites on the Web;
The Motley Fool, the most-consulted financial forum in the online world;
The New York Times on the Web, which brings the high-quality reporting of The New York
Times to the World Wide Web, America Online, Pointcast and other Internet channels and has attracted more than 7.5 million unique registered users;
OpenSales.com, the emerging leader in eCommerce solutions and services;
Paramount Digital Entertainment, developing new online opportunities that leverage Paramount's properties;
SportsLine USA, Inc., providing Internet sports content, community and eCommerce on a global basis;
* Uproar Ltd., a leading entertainment company specializing in the creation, distribution, and syndication of online game shows and other entertainment properties; and
* Wrenchhead.com, the Web's most comprehensive automotive enthusiast resource.
"We're thrilled to have this tremendous response from so many of the leading Web sites," said George Conrades, Akamai Chairman and CEO. "FreeFlow has set a new standard for Web site performance and reliability, and the vanguard of the Internet have immediately recognized its value and importance."
Brian Sugar, director, New Media at J.Crew, explained, "When Akamai told me about its guaranteed Web content delivery service, we couldn't pass it up. Considering the lifestyle nature of our brand, we must use compelling photography and quick speed to showcase our merchandise."
And Dwight J. Gibbs, Chief Techie Geek of The Motley Fool laughed, "Using Akamai just makes good sense as it addresses the three critical areas of the Fool web site. Our customers get our content more quickly. The load on our Web servers and other infrastructure is greatly decreased. And our bandwidth demands are minimized. In short, Akamai enables better customer service and decreased costs -- what else could a Fool want?"
Akamai's Proof of Performance Guarantee
Because of FreeFlow's intelligence and Akamai's huge network reach, the company offers an unprecedented guarantee to every customer. Called "Proof of Performance," Akamai's offer guarantees:
1. Performance Enhancement: FreeFlow will deliver content faster than the Web site owner can itself, each and every day.
2. 100% Uptime: FreeFlow will deliver content all the time, without exceptions.
If Akamai fails to meet either of these standards, the customer doesn't pay for the day in which the failure occurs. No other company offers such a comprehensive, no-excuses commitment to delivering Internet content worldwide.
About Akamai
Akamai Technologies is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts and has offices in San Mateo and Cupertino, California, and Europe. Akamai is the leader in distributed content, streaming media, and applications delivery, serving over 225 of the Web's most popular properties including over 100 leading e-commerce companies. Akamai has deployed the broadest global network for content, streaming media, and applications delivery with more than 2000 servers in over 40 countries directly connected to more than 100 different telecommunications networks. Akamai (pronounced AH kuh my) is Hawaiian for intelligent, clever and cool.
| Contacts: |
||
| Marco Greenberg NYPR 212-367-9600 marco@nypr.com |
--or-- | David Goodtree Akamai Technologies 617-250-3080 david@akamai.com |
| Lisa Bradlow NYPR 212-367-9600 lisa@nypr.com |
||
CAMBRIDGE, MA, June 16, 1999 --- Akamai Technologies, which operates the world's only 100% guaranteed network for Internet content delivery, announced today that over 20 major Web sites have become charter customers of the company's first offering, FreeFlow. FreeFlow SM has been in commercial use since the beginning of April and to date has delivered more than 20 billion hits for properties such as the CNN Web sites, GO Network TM, and About.com. The service dramatically improves Web site performance and reliability, and is backed by Akamai's unparalleled Proof of Performance guarantee.
"Akamai is pumping out images and graphics for the CNN Web sites with high speed, creating headroom for us to serve an average of 23 million page impressions each week day," said Monty Mullig, vice president of CNN Internet Technologies. "In addition to enhancing our everyday capacity, FreeFlow is improving our overall site performance."
Another leading company that has chosen Akamai's service is Infoseek Corporation, the home of GO Network. According to David Chamberlain, CIO of Infoseek Corporation, "Akamai made March Madness a very sane event for us, and its peak crowd protection allowed us to serve record numbers of requests for media-rich, real-time information to college basketball fans around the world."
Akamai also delivers content for About.com, a leading Internet media company. 'About.com helps people get the most out of the Net by providing highly-relevant content from hundreds of expert guides via our network of destination sites," explained Sara Plath, director, Hosting Operations for About.com. "Akamai allows us to provide a better experience for our visitors by ensuring we always have plenty of serving capacity. Akamai's service is well thought out and easy to use."
In addition to the CNN Web sites, Infoseek Corporation, GO Network, and About.com, other major businesses that are working with Akamai include new media companies, eCommerce firms, and financial Web sites. Yahoo!, a leading global Internet media company, which already uses FreeFlow, has extended its relationship to include the Yahoo! GeoCities community services. In addition, the other companies signing up for FreeFlow within its first three months of availability are, in alphabetical order:
CCBN.com, the Corporate Communications Broadcast Network, providing a comprehensive, turnkey solution for public companies to enhance the Investor Relations section of their corporate Web sites;
Discovery Enterprises Worldwide, which enables Internet users to explore their world via discovery.com;
Furniture.com, the e-commerce leader revolutionizing the way people shop for furniture;
Gomez.com, the eCommerce Authority;
Hard Rock Hotel, which offers resort information including virtual tours and entertainment schedules;
Homeportfolio.com, the leading Internet destination for premium home design products;
Companies from idealab!, the Pasadena, California-based Internet incubator;
J.Crew.com, a full-service eCommerce apparel site;
Looksmart, a leading, independent portal with over 900,000 unique URLs - the largest collection of editorially reviewed and categorized sites on the Web;
The Motley Fool, the most-consulted financial forum in the online world;
The New York Times on the Web, which brings the high-quality reporting of The New York
Times to the World Wide Web, America Online, Pointcast and other Internet channels and has attracted more than 7.5 million unique registered users;
OpenSales.com, the emerging leader in eCommerce solutions and services;
Paramount Digital Entertainment, developing new online opportunities that leverage Paramount's properties;
SportsLine USA, Inc., providing Internet sports content, community and eCommerce on a global basis;
* Uproar Ltd., a leading entertainment company specializing in the creation, distribution, and syndication of online game shows and other entertainment properties; and
* Wrenchhead.com, the Web's most comprehensive automotive enthusiast resource.
"We're thrilled to have this tremendous response from so many of the leading Web sites," said George Conrades, Akamai Chairman and CEO. "FreeFlow has set a new standard for Web site performance and reliability, and the vanguard of the Internet have immediately recognized its value and importance."
Brian Sugar, director, New Media at J.Crew, explained, "When Akamai told me about its guaranteed Web content delivery service, we couldn't pass it up. Considering the lifestyle nature of our brand, we must use compelling photography and quick speed to showcase our merchandise."
And Dwight J. Gibbs, Chief Techie Geek of The Motley Fool laughed, "Using Akamai just makes good sense as it addresses the three critical areas of the Fool web site. Our customers get our content more quickly. The load on our Web servers and other infrastructure is greatly decreased. And our bandwidth demands are minimized. In short, Akamai enables better customer service and decreased costs -- what else could a Fool want?"
Akamai's Proof of Performance Guarantee
Because of FreeFlow's intelligence and Akamai's huge network reach, the company offers an unprecedented guarantee to every customer. Called "Proof of Performance," Akamai's offer guarantees:
1. Performance Enhancement: FreeFlow will deliver content faster than the Web site owner can itself, each and every day.
2. 100% Uptime: FreeFlow will deliver content all the time, without exceptions.
If Akamai fails to meet either of these standards, the customer doesn't pay for the day in which the failure occurs. No other company offers such a comprehensive, no-excuses commitment to delivering Internet content worldwide.
About Akamai
Akamai Technologies is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts and has offices in San Mateo and Cupertino, California, and Europe. Akamai is the leader in distributed content, streaming media, and applications delivery, serving over 225 of the Web's most popular properties including over 100 leading e-commerce companies. Akamai has deployed the broadest global network for content, streaming media, and applications delivery with more than 2000 servers in over 40 countries directly connected to more than 100 different telecommunications networks. Akamai (pronounced AH kuh my) is Hawaiian for intelligent, clever and cool.
