The Who, What, When of Endurance International Group (EIG)
In this post we are going to take a closer look on the big conglomerates that took over dozens of hosting companies for the past few years – the Endurance International Group – EIG.
In case you are not aware – EIG is probably the biggest player in today’s web hosting industry. The company was first founded as a web hosting company in 1996 and is HQ in Burlington, Massachusetts. in 2011, EIG was acquired by Accel-KKR and GS Capital Partners for an undisclosed amount. Today, the company is listed on NASDAQ and valued at $2.24 billion (trading at $17.06 -17.72 range today).
At this time of writing, EIG has more than 60 web hosting brands under its umbrella (more on this shortly) and 3.8 million paying customers from all over the world.
In short, they are really, really huge.
However, looking at the company’s recent financial result, EIG is losing more than $40 million for the first nine months in 2014 (out of $457.9 million in revenue).
Hosting Companies and Brands under EIG
Endurance International Group – or EIG for short – umbrellas over approximately 60 companies, many of which are web hosting companies. The latest two newcomers to the list are Arvixe and Webzai, both acquisitions were announced in the company’s Q3 financial report.
The following is a list of companies along with their respective EIG acquisition dates (where available).
Update: Also check out Michael’s list of 80+ EIG brands here: http://researchasahobby.com/full-list-eig-hosting-companies-brands/
2slick.com
AccountSupport
A Small Orange – 2012
ApolloHosting
Arvixe – 2014
Berry Information Systems L.L.C.
BigRock
BizLand
BlueDomino
Bluehost – 2011
Directi – 2014
Dollar2Host
Domain.com
DomainHost
Dot5Hosting
Dotster
easyCGI
eHost
EntryHost
Escalate Internet
FastDomain
FatCow
FreeYellow
Glob@t
Homestead
HostCentric
HostClear
HostGator – 2012
Hostnine – 2012
HostMonster – 2011
Host with Me Now
HostYourSite.com
HyperMart
IMOutdoors
Intuit Websites
iPage – 2009
IPOWER/iPowerWeb
JustHost – 2011
LogicBoxes
MojoMarketplace
MyDomain
MyResellerHome
NetFirms
Networks Web Hosting
Nexx
PowWeb
PureHost
ReadyHosting.com
ResellerClub
Saba-Pro
SEO Hosting
Southeast Web
Spry
StartLogic
SuperGreen Hosting
Typepad
USANetHosting
VirtualAvenue
VPSLink
WebHost4Life
webhosting.info
Webstrike Solutions
Webzai – 2014
Xeran
YourWebHosting
* Note: Hyperlinks are pointing to our review on the respective hosting brands.
Is EIG’s hosting brands any good?
Well, the company has some definite pluses – take, for example, it’s A+ rating on BBB.
BBB’s reason of ratings
- Length of time business has been operating.
- Complaint volume filed with BBB for business of this size.
- Response to 365 complaint(s) filed against business.
- Resolution of complaint(s) filed against business.
- BBB has sufficient background information on this business.
However – given the fact that I am affiliated to a number of hosting brands under its management – I will leave it to you to decide.
Not all EIG brands are the same
Like them or not – it’s important to understand that not all Endurance brands are the same.
Every acquisition comes with some risk and uncertainty – and, as some may expect, some of the EIG brands were “left for dead” while the conglomerate continued to grow and pour investments into other areas.
I was historically a fan of JustHost and BlueHost – however, I’ve seen a big drop in the quality of support at JustHost. Conversely, however, BlueHost has continued to thrive under its new management. In fact, BlueHost’s website has been completely revamped and the host is continuing to expand – and even hiring new staff.
Of course, these are just two examples – and when it comes to shopping for a host, you should always be careful and do thorough research before making your decision.
Non-EIG Hosting Brands
Just in case you prefer something else – here are a few non-EIG hosting companies that I recommend (click link to read my review).
A2 Hosting – Fast and reliable server, reasonable price.
One.com – $0.25/mo hosting, you can’t find anything cheaper than this.
InMotion Hosting – Home of Web Hosting Secret Revealed!
IX Web Hosting – Reliable and cost-effective if you need multiple IPs.
Web Host Face – New kids on the blocks – cheap and very reliable.
Pressidium – New company, a great host but it’s only for WordPress sites.
SiteGround – Fast, reliable, and lots of custom features; but expensive.
[…] In 2012, Brent sold the company was sold to Endurance International Group (EIG) for, unofficial figure, $225 million. EIG, which also owns a number of other well-known hosting brands, including BlueHost, iPage, FatCow, HostMonster, Pow Web, Easy CGI, Arvixe, eHost, A Small Orange, and so on; is now the largest website hosting company. […]
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