<p>Intermedia claims it is the first Microsoft Exchange Hosting Provider to reach 500,000 subscribers. Much of that success comes from channel partnerships, including relationships with Ingram Micro Cloud, Tech Data TDCloud, and several large cloud services providers (CSPs) that quietly leverage Intermedia's hosting service. Thousands of MSPs also plug into Intermedia's hosted Exchange services, and the company has grown 40 percent in the past year.</p><p>Still, Talkin' Cloud believes no CSP can live on hosted Exchange alone. Dozens of CSPs offer aggressively priced hosted Exchange services. Plus Microsoft's own Office 365, which includes Exchange Online, is catching on with SMB customers and some enterprises. And more recently, big telcos and computer giants like AT&T, Dell, Sprint and Verizon have introduced Office 365 syndication services.</p><p>To diversify its revenue stream, Intermedia promotes an Office in the Cloud concept which blends backup, mobility, security and voice services with Exchange, Lync and SharePoint. Intermedia also has a HostPilot Control Panel, allowing partners to manage customers' hosted services. Intermedia's hosted Exchange service also has a five-nines (99.999 percent) service level agreement (SLA), though I don't know how much planned downtime that SLA involves.</p><p>The bigger question: How many Intermedia customers will extend beyond hosted Exchange to embrace Intermedia's complete Office in the Cloud services? And when will hosted PBX services, another big Intermedia bet, catch on with customers and channel partners? We'll keep poking around for answers.</p><p><a href="http://www.talkincloud.com/intermedia-500000-hosted-exchange-seats-whats-next/">Keep reading...</a></p>