Canadian Web Hosting, Eh?
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Oh Canada! No, I'm not Canadian, but there have been times recently when I wished I was. The latest reason would have to be the sudden growth of the Canadian "loonie" as compared to the weakening U.S. dollar. Needless to say, Canadian businesses with U.S. clientèle are expected to flourish, and a lot of Americans are looking to get in on this. An industry like web hosting, which has taken great strides in Canada, would be a great place to start. Calling all mooseheads!
Canadian web hosting companies had a large percentage of U.S. customers prior to the recent U.S. dollar implosion, so it isn't like they've been going under the radar. And most of these customers have rates based on the U.S. dollar. Whatever your opinions are about the U.S. economy, the fact is that the dollar has fallen to its lowest rate ever against European and high level Asian currencies.
I think most will blame the low U.S. dollar on the mortgage crisis that has racked lenders and borrowers alike. After all, the Federal Reserve has already cut borrowing costs twice this year and speculation is growing about a third, causing high-end investors to withhold from purchasing U.S. assets. The only hope for the dollar to regain some foothold would be for the mortgage crisis to spread from the U.S. to Europe and elsewhere, but for now this concern has only been rumored. As of now, the fourth quarter is expected to bring more losses, possibly spreading to banks outside the U.S.
One reason why the Canadian dollar is growing, while the U.S. dollar is weakening, is because the oil crisis hasn't hit them nearly as hard as it has hit the U.S. In fact Canada's oil reserves, which come in the form of sand (go figure), are the second largest in the world behind only Saudi Arabia. And with a population only 1/10 the size of America, those Canucks are practically bathing in crude.
Just to be clear, I am no economic expert, so if you have more information regarding the low U.S. dollar, please feel free to post a comment using the link at the bottom of this article.
What I do know is that the lower the Canadian dollar is compared to the U.S. dollar, the cheaper it would be to use Canadian products, such as web hosting. For those of you who missed out when the U.S. dollar was high, don't worry, there are other reasons to use Canadian web hosting. But for those who got in when the loonie was low, you're seeing as much as 15% revenue growth with a website based in Canada.
But what about the Canadians, eh? Aside from boosting their own revenue from U.S. customers, Canadian web hosts can also greatly improve their product with better and cheaper equipment, such as servers. At this rate, it won't be long before Canadian web hosting companies surpass those in the U.S. in terms of quality, and all because of cheaper capital expansion. Don't be surprised either if some Canadian organizations start to acquire U.S. firms.
Earlier I promised that there were other reasons to use Canadian web hosting. In the next section I'll be getting into that, which will explain why it's not too late to reap the same benefits as those who got in early, especially with the dollar continuing its weakening trend.
Next: Why Web Host in Canada? >>
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