EarthLink Cloud Hosting Solution Keeps Ciao Bella Gelato
Operational During Storm
ATLANTA, Dec. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- EarthLink, Inc.
(NASDAQ: ELNK), a leading IT and communications provider, today
announced that the recent virtualization solution implemented for
customer Ciao Bella Gelato enabled the frozen dessert
wholesaler and retailer to stay open for business despite the
aftermath of Superstorm Sandy at its Florham Park, NJ headquarters. In September,
Ciao Bella successfully converted its onsite servers to an
EarthLink Cloud Hosting solution with its applications and
data now hosted, maintained and monitored virtually at an EarthLink
data center. With EarthLink Cloud Hosting, Ciao Bella employees
throughout the country were able to submit orders and access
critical applications via the cloud even though power remained off
at its New Jersey facility for
almost two weeks.
An EarthLink voice and data customer since 2011, Ciao Bella IT
Director and Controller Robert
Serchuk sought EarthLink's advice about its aging server
infrastructure. With employees nationwide at corporate, retail
stores, a warehouse and customer service center, Serchuk needed a
reliable hosted infrastructure that would provide the company with
operational efficiencies, disaster recovery and scalability for
future growth.
EarthLink compiled a profile of Ciao Bella's applications,
creating a solution that included three virtual servers, Secure
Hosted Email and Platinum-level Managed Services, providing a
high level of managed support and an important safety net given the
company's lack of IT staff. Ciao Bella's IT servers now reside in
the cloud, enabling its dispersed sales force and production
facility in Oregon to remain
operational even though the company's Florham Park location was shut down due to
Superstorm Sandy. Even its New
Jersey-based employees were able to work remotely, accessing
their applications via the cloud.
"While disaster recovery was not the primary reason we
virtualized with EarthLink, it probably should have been as it was
a significant benefit after this storm," shared Serchuk. "The
beauty of moving to the cloud is that we saved money by eliminating
the capital expense of buying new servers and replaced our IT
consultant with EarthLink. Plus, my time used to be split evenly
between IT duties and finances. Now I can dedicate myself fully to
our financials, which is a huge benefit. My CEO and Board are all
very pleased with our EarthLink solution."
Ciao Bella has experienced several key benefits since
virtualizing with EarthLink. Its workforce is more productive, with
faster access to the server and applications. Updates that
previously took hours now take minutes. But the reliability of the
new email platform perhaps had the most positive impact. Before
switching to EarthLink, frequent outages would last days and
sometimes weeks. Now the email platform performs reliably, and
employees can synchronize corporate email with their mobile
devices, a feature not available on their earlier version of
Outlook.
EarthLink Executive Vice President of Products and Marketing
Michael D. Toplisek is pleased with
how Ciao Bella's new virtualization solution performed in a crisis.
"Ciao Bella is a great example of how cloud hosting uses geographic
diversity to keep a business operational even in extreme
circumstances. The company is also well-positioned for future
expansion, with no need to buy new equipment for upgrades. They can
now dedicate key resources to growth while EarthLink is there to
manage their entire IT infrastructure."
About EarthLink
EarthLink, Inc. (NASDAQ: ELNK) is a leading IT services and
communications provider to more than 150,000 businesses and one
million consumers nationwide. EarthLink empowers customers with
managed services including cloud computing, managed and private
cloud, and virtualization services such as managed hosting and
cloud workspace. EarthLink also offers a robust portfolio of IT
security, application hosting, colocation and IT support services.
The company operates an extensive network spanning 28,800 route
fiber miles with 90 metro fiber rings and 4 secure data centers
providing ubiquitous nationwide data and voice IP service coverage
across more than 90 percent of the country. Founded in 1994,
EarthLink's award-winning reputation for outstanding service and
product innovation is supported by an experienced team of
professionals focused on best-in-class customer care. For
more information, visit EarthLink's website at
www.earthlink.net.
About Ciao Bella Gelato
Ciao Bella, America's most stylish dessert brand, began in
New York's Little Italy and has
been tempting taste buds for almost three decades. Beyond ordinary,
Ciao Bella's indulgent collection of gelato, sorbet and Greek
frozen yogurt offers an unparalleled dessert experience by relying
on a chef-inspired blend of naturally intense ingredients and a
passion for evoking delight in every frozen bite. Offering unique
and intense flavors like Blood Orange Sorbet, Key Lime Graham
Cracker Gelato and Raspberry Greek Frozen Yogurt, Ciao Bella uses
only the most select and pure ingredients, resulting in
mouth-watering frozen treats that embody both classic Italy and modern America. The brand has been
featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show and on AOL's home page for its
captivating creations. For more information, visit
www.ciaobellagelato.com.
SOURCE EarthLink, Inc.