Announcing Kentico+, the SaaS Offering of Kentico in the Cloud

We are always looking for ways how to make it easier for customers to purchase and use Kentico products. An obvious solution is offering Kentico in the SaaS (Software as a Service) model in combination with cost efficiency of the cloud.

Today, the dream comes true and we are launching the first and only .NET-based CXM solution provided as a managed service in the Windows Azure cloud! With Kentico EMS+, we’re bringing technology to the masses that until now was only available to enterprise clients with an extensive infrastructure.

Below, you can find answers to the most frequent questions and if you need any further clarification, please feel free to post your comments below or contact our sales team.

For more information, we encourage you to join the upcoming webinar Kentico Technical Learning: EMS+ scheduled for June 19, 2012 from 9-10 AM PDT. You can register for this webinar at www1.gotomeeting.com/register/556254312
 

Q: What is Kentico+?

A: Kentico+ is the new software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering of Kentico products in the cloud. At this moment, the only product available in this model is Kentico EMS+, which is Kentico EMS running in cloud and provided in the SaaS model.
 

Q: When will Kentico+ be available?

A: It’s available right now! See www.kentico.com/plus
 

Q: What does the “+” mean?

A: The “+” in the name indicates the client gets more than software:

• Implementation services provided by qualified Kentico Solution Partners
• Scalable hosting in the Windows Azure cloud backed by Kentico support team
• Additional hosting services: monitoring, backup, upgrades
• Cost advantages:
  • No upfront costs
  • Affordable monthly billing
  • Pay-as-you go billing for additional use (e.g. additional servers for temporary traffic peaks)
  • Operational instead of Capital expenditures (OpEx instead of CapEx)

 

Q: How much does it cost?

A: Like all of our licensing, we want to keep Kentico EMS+ licensing for the cloud simple and affordable. The default package is $999 per month which includes:

• Kentico EMS for a single website
• Windows Azure cloud hosting:
  • 1 Windows Azure Small Instance (1 CPU Core, 1.75 GB RAM)
  • 5 GB of SQL Azure database
  • 25 GB of disk storage and 5M storage transactions
  • 500 GB of bandwidth
  • Any usage over the standard package (e.g. more bandwidth or larger instance) will be charged extra based on the Windows Azure price list: www.windowsazure.com/en-us/pricing/details
• 40k e-mail messages through a high deliverability e-mail service (customers can alternatively use any other SMTP-enabled service)
• 24x7 Global Support
• Free upgrades to new versions performed by Kentico (provided there are no unsupported customizations to the standard Kentico CMS code or database structure)

Optional extras:

• Additional website running within the same project (same installation): $799 per month per instance
• Additional cloud instance for higher availability or scalability (an equivalent of additional web farm server): $999 per month

Please note that this is an introductory offer and we waive any setup fees for a limited time period. As this is a new offering and the SaaS model is very different to our existing licensing models, we reserve the right to change the price in the future.
 

Q: Is there a commitment?

A: Yes, there’s a 1-year commitment. The cost without 1-year commitment is $200 more per month.
 

Q: Can I switch between perpetual license and SaaS model?

A: It’s not possible at this moment.
 

Q: Will Kentico offer also Kentico CMS in the SaaS model?

A: At this moment, we will only offer Kentico EMS as a service. We are considering a launch of the Kentico CMS+ offering in the future.
 

Q: What is the difference between traditional hosting and running Kentico CMS in the Windows Azure cloud?

A: The Windows Azure cloud provides you with high availability and scalability that traditional shared or dedicated hosting cannot offer. We chose the Windows Azure platform since it’s backed by Microsoft which ensures a high level of stability and security.

The deployment model we provide for Kentico EMS+ is much simplified from the one offered by Windows Azure by default. We take care of all complexities, we set up the cloud environment for you and all you need to do is upload your code files, including web parts, custom modules, web services or ASPX pages. It means Kentico+ doesn’t require you to compile the Kentico CMS project and deploy it as one big package; you can change single code files everytime you need to.
 

Q: Can I still purchase perpetual licenses?

A: Yes, we will keep offering both perpetual licenses and SaaS options, so that clients can choose the one that fits them best.
 

Q: Where can I get technical information?

A: We encourage you to join our upcoming webinar: Kentico Technical Learning: EMS+ scheduled for June 19, 2012 from 9-10 AM PDT. You can register for this webinar at www1.gotomeeting.com/register/556254312.
 
Want to use Kentico EMS+? Learn more and sign up at www.kentico.com/plus
 

Petr PalasGoogle Plus

I'm the founder and CEO of Kentico. I write about Kentico, WCM, CXM, digital marketing and related technologies.