Ninemsn opts for public cloud

Enterprise hosting company Hostworks is set to lose its flagship client ninemsn as the consumer portal moves into a multi-cloud content management system provided by SiteCore hosted in the Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure clouds.

Ninemsn will continue to use Hostworks for the remainder of its 12-month contract. 

Beyond that, the partnership appears uncertain. A ninemsn spokesperson told iTnews the relationship with Hostworks will continue until all of the media company’s properties are moved to AWS and Azure.

This transition is expected to be completed within the next 18 months.

“Our news property is the first to be hosted within this environment. We intend to move our remaining properties into this environment over the course of the next 18 months,” she said.

“The Hostworks relationship continues unchanged, and will continue to run our existing sites and services until such a time as they are migrated to our cloud environment,"

AWS has targeted several of Hostworks largest customers.

One of the first Amazon Web Services employees hired in Australia was a former Hostworks sales executive.

Other former Hostworks executives have gone on to work for cloud businesses started up by Hostworks founder Marty Gauvin's Tier 5 after Broadcast Australia purchased the hosting company for $68.9 million in 2008.

Carsales.com.au CIO Ajay Bhatia told iTnews he expects to shift more of his footprint from Hostworks to cloud solutions in the near future, whilst fellow Hostworks customer Network Ten has also shifted some workloads to Bulletproof Networks.

Hostworks' clients include the ABC, AUSTAR, Australia Post, Grays Online, realestate.com.au, SBS, SEEK, Ticketek and Vodafone.

Brett Winterford contributed to this story.