SALT LAKE CITY, UT, April 08, 2008 - IKANO Communications Inc., the nation's leading aggregator of ISP services, announced today that it is teaming up with Google to deploy Google Apps™ - Google's web-based platform for communication and collaboration. The collaboration will allow IKANO to help mid-sized Internet Service Providers, generally with 100,000 or less subscribers, to expand service offerings to end users, while reducing technology and support expenses and maintaining existing branding.
IKANO plans to migrate its current end users to Google Apps in the second quarter of this year. Thereafter, IKANO will extend the offering to its large base of wholesale and private label ISP customers. These customers purchase aggregated Internet access (DSL and Dialup), email and other IP solutions that IKANO bundles from major telco and other service providers in the U.S. and Canada.
With Google Apps, IKANO's ISP customers will now have access to Google's popular communications tools such as Gmail™ email, Google Docs™ collaboration, Google Calendar™ shared calendaring, Google Talk™ instant messaging, and the Start Page feature for creating a customizable home page. These services, powered by Google, are available to users via any Internet-connected computer and many mobile devices.
"Many ISPs are looking to take themselves out of the technology and infrastructure maintenance business so they can focus on their customers," said George Naspo, IKANO CEO. "Google Apps allows ISPs to utilize Google's dynamic communication and collaboration applications under the ISPs' own domain names. Branded Google Apps services can bring new life into the ISPs product line at very little cost. Google's robust communication tools, mobile email, and calendar services will give service providers nationwide a rich technology path into the future."
"Google is excited to work with IKANO to provide their subscribers with rich applications to stay connected and communicate more effectively. It's all hosted by Google, so there's no hardware to maintain or software to install," said Eugene Levitsky, Google Apps Sales Specialist.
IKANO is pleased to work with the Google team to offer Google Apps migration and support services. Both companies are committed to offering ISPs of all sizes useful communication and collaboration tools via cloud computing.
"We foresee this as a breakaway product in the industry. IKANO's unique solution to ISPs provides mail migration services, branded portal development, and live Tier 1 customer support for Google Apps. It's a great benefit to ISPs and end users to improve their Internet experience and therefore reduce churn," said Todd Krause, IKANO Vice President of Customer Support. "In addition, with Google Apps, we're able to provision subscribers automatically and give them single sign-on with IKANO's existing services. Very few companies can offer nationwide DSL, Google Apps, and related customer support under one billing platform."
About IKANO Communications, Inc.
IKANO, founded in 1999, is a provider of IP solutions for Internet Service Providers including Internet access, billing, customer support, hosting, portal, and email services. IKANO makes it easy for service providers to maintain a unique brand while eliminating the hassle of maintaining network contracts, servers, and call centers. Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, the company has offices in Los Angeles, Seattle, and Toronto and offers services in the United States and Canada. For more information, visit
www.ikano.com.
Google, Google Apps, Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Talk are trademarks of Google Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.