After readers informed the Register about the problem, the website contacted 1&1 and received an email response apologizing for and explaining the disruption.

According to the statement, the problem arose when 1&1 was updating Microsoft Outlook Web Access software. “Following preparations for an update to new software for Microsoft Exchange 2007 Front-end, one server serving the Outlook front-end has partly been inaccessible as a result of a change in its IP address,” the statement read. “The IP address of this server was apparently made available too late for some DNS servers for some ISPs, resulting in some hundred customers using these DNS servers not being able to access their mailbox via Outlook Web Access.”

While 1&1 reported that a large majority of DNS servers already incorporated the change, due to different DNS server configurations, some users experienced slow performance. They noted that customers with such an issue should attempt to refresh their DNS cache with the command “IPCONFIG/flushdns.” They also suggested that another way to cope with the problem would be to use a different mail-client than OWA until the DNS-server has been fully updated.

According to 1&1, no customers using Linux mail servers or MailExchange customers have been affected.

According to the announcement Monday, the partnership also strengthens RatePoint’s international reach by extending its platform, which includes the latest Web 2.0 trends, web content authentication and consumer ratings systems, to businesses in Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Spain.

“As the world’s largest hosting provider, we are in a unique position to understand the needs of businesses with an online presence,” said 1&1 chief executive officer Oliver Mauss said. “Not only will RatePoint’s platform help our customers stand out on the Web and promote their business quality, it will have a tremendous impact in converting site visitors into loyal customers and improving customer satisfaction.”

RatePoint helps companies manage what is said about them online by providing a mechanism to collect, manage and promote authentic consumer reviews and feedback directly from their websites.

Having made enhancements earlier this year, RatePoint’s platform benefits consumers by giving them an interactive method to provide feedback directly to a business. The business can then use this important data to resolve potential issues.

“1&1 has established its place as a global leader in the Internet marketplace by continually providing progressive services to meet future trends in the marketplace,” RatePoint co-founder and CEO Neal Creighton said. “RatePoint is proud to offer our online reputation management services to help transform business websites into formidable marketing and customer satisfaction tools for 1&1’s international customer base.”

On Friday, 1&1 announced that it is offering professional email solution support and as far back as early June, Open-Xchange released a free, open source collaboration tool – just two of many that have tailored their email hosting products to the iconic Apple device. The iPhone is proving to be the latest battleground on which email hosts will compete.

On Monday, email host Mailtrust, a division of Rackspace, announced its wireless data synchronization support for the iPhone 2.0 software. Mainly intended for business users, Mailtrust provides utilizing the latest mobile innovations, including secure push email, contacts, calendar events, Global Address List support, security better than IMAP / POP3 functionality, remote data wipe if a device is lost or stolen, 24/7/365 Support, and the ability to view Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, JPEG and iWork attachments exactly as formatted.

Microsoft Hosted Exchange email service provider AppRiver announced in late June it was prepared for Apple iPhone 2.0’s launch by offering users the first network optimized for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync enabled devices.

In June, AppRiver CEO Michael Murdoch said that his company was the first and only Hosted Exchange provider with Akamai’s IP acceleration technology integrated with the new iPhone, delivering tighter security, connectivity and performance.

“Like Apple, AppRiver strives to provide groundbreaking innovation,” Murdoch said in a statement.

However, with the proliferation of email hosts latching onto the iPhone craze, AppRiver is not the only company trying to gain iPhones market share in a market that, as of Monday, is one-million and growing.

The news comes a month after open source software provider Open-Xchange released a new tool to enable iPhone users to have access to Open-Xchange’s business-class email, calendaring and collaboration solutions.

iPhone users can get access to their emails, appointments and contacts, anytime and anywhere. A push service ensures that all data is synchronized in real-time.

Users of the original iPhones can also update to the new iPhone 2.0 software to use 1&1’s professional communications suite.

“Particularly for small enterprises, 1&1 Microsoft Exchange is a genuine alternative to a dedicated server, and at a fraction of the cost,” says Oliver Mauss, CEO of 1&1 Internet. “The iPhone, with its outstanding user concept, has gained many excited followers across the world in a short time. We are very glad that all features of 1&1 Microsoft Exchange are now available on this innovative device”.

1&1 Microsoft Exchange is priced from $6.99 per month, and includes an 1GB Exchange account, group functionality tools, such as public calendars, contacts, discussions and task management.

Users will receive a free license for Microsoft Outlook 2007 software. Email addresses from other providers can also be used with 1&1 Microsoft Exchange and the new iPhone software.

1&1 email solutions are hosted within 1&1’s high security data centers, where the company oversees security updates and back-ups reducing the total cost of ownership for the service.

Additionally, users connect to their Microsoft Exchange account via encrypted SSL connections, ensuring secure access to personal data from any Internet-connected computer worldwide.

Described by 1&1 as “an affordable alternative to Microsoft Exchange and SharePoint,” the software, announced Wednesday will offer small and medium-sized businesses a new hosted communication and collaboration solution that offers business-class email, PIM and document sharing. MailXchange also offers real-time push service for email and PIM on Windows Mobile capable phones.

Open-Xchange CEO Rafael Laguna said that the partnership with 1&1 will help deliver software and services to a wider range of clientele. “We’re seeing the dawn of a new era with hosted software made widely available to everyone when that was previously reserved only for installations at enterprises,” Laguna said in a statement. “1&1’s customers will benefit from access to our collaboration software that streamlines communications and can improve users’ productivity.”

1&1 MailXchange fees start at $4.99 per user per month with discounts for additional users.

1&1 is the latest company to collaborate with Open-Xchange. In May, web hosting software giant Parallels partnered with Open-Xchange to integrate Open-Xchange with Parallels Automation solutions in an effort to expand its Open Platform initiative using APIs to help integrate its virtualization and automation technology with third party applications and systems.

1&1 Internet said Thursday that it has seen “impressive growth” in the number of .org domains registered, which the company says suggests “an increase in web activity within the non-profit and charity sectors.”

Between December 2006 and December 2007, the company says it registered more than 70,000 .org domains, an increase of 31 percent (presumably over the previous year-long period). The hosting company charges $6.99 per year for a .org domain, in a package that includes a five-page website, search engine submission and private registration.

Included in 1&1’s announcement was some comment from the Public Interest Registry, the organization that operates the .org domain, which helped to sing the praises of the work non-profits are doing online.

“The contributions of the .ORG community in recent years are amazing,” says PIR CEO Alex Raad, in the 1&1 press release. “They have not only helped to galvanize interest in various causes, but by adopting trends such as social networking, have given individuals unprecedented means to inspire, educate, collaborate, and ultimately change the world as we know it.”

The Public Interest Registry might take some issue, though, with 1&1’s assumption about the charity-related reason for the increase, given its recent efforts to make people in general aware that there are actually no registration restrictions on the .org domain, which is most commonly associated with non-profits.

In April, the group launched a resource center for users of the .org domain. Along with providing resources to the long-standing non-profit audience for the domain, the company sought to clear up misconceptions that the .org domain was limited to use by non-profits, and offered examples of groups using .org domains in “numerous ways.”

And in a decidedly for-profit move, the company reported earlier this month that it intends to raise the price of .org domain registration by 10 percent in November of this year.

1&1 says it is participating in PIR’s “World Voices” campaign, which intended to showcase the contributions of the .org community, and, says Raad, to “position the Public Interest Registry as a passionate steward of the namespace and a fierce advocate for the rights of its community.”

German hosting firm 1&1 internet said Wednesday that it had joined the Foundation, based in Nuremberg, Germany, a European network of open source developers with more than 120 members.

1&1 says through its membership in the foundation, it is seeking to “actively promote the acceptance of open source solutions in companies and to profit from cooperation with open source developers.”

As OSBF’s latest member, 1&1 says it is out to demonstrate how the deployment of open source solutions can propel business success. The company says its own success has been linked to open source developments from the start. More than 90 percent of the more than 3 million websites hosted by the company are hosted on open source technology. The company operates more than 40,000 Linux servers and employs more than 400 open source developers.

1&1 says its own developments are redistributed into the community. For example, the company says it developed the qooxdoo.org Ajax framework, focused on graphic al user interfaces with support for JavaScript development. That project is available to the open source community at large.

The company announced on Thursday, fairly unexpectedly, that Andreas Gauger has stepped down from his position as CEO and chairman of the board after 13 years. He will be succeeded by Oliver Mauss.

As CEO of 1&1 Internet, as well as the company’s subsidiaries in the UK, France and Spain, Mauss will be in charge of leading 1&1’s international web hosting operations.

Mauss worked for Vodafone Group for over a decade, most recently as the global director of business product marketing. Prior to that, he held positions in product management and business development at telecommunication companies o.tel.o and RWE Telliance.

Gauger became chairman of the board in 1999 when 1&1 Internet acquired his German web hosting company, Schlund + Partner.

“Within a short time, Andreas Gauger has led 1&1 to become one of the world’s leading web hosts, by defining a standard for user-friendly and cost-effective web hosting solutions and by developing and directing 1&1’s successful international expansion strategy,” said the company in its announcement.

Indeed, with over 10 million domain names, a milestone it achieved in March, and 47,000 servers running in its five data centers, United Internet-owned 1&1 is considered the largest web hosting provider in Europe, and one of the largest hosting providers in the world.

The web host is offering its Home and Developer shared hosting packages free for the first three months. The plans require a $1 setup fee on the Virtual Private Server II for a 12 month contract and Business Server II for a 24 month contract.

1&1 is also offering customers the .info domain at $0.99 for the first year. Additionally, the company is offering 1&1 Microsoft SharePoint 3.0.

The company is also offering Microsoft SharePoint 3.0, which helps employees stay connected and productive by gving access to the people, documents and information needed to make decisions and operate a business.

The solution includes new features, such as mobile access to tasks, project updates via RSS Feeds and the ability to better communicate using Blogs and Wiki sites. Growing businesses can also buy more web space to meet their expanding storage needs.

1&1 hosting plans include up to five free domains and complimentary private domain registration. They also include the 1&1 WebsiteBuilder, enabling users to build a professional web presence.

The new 1&1 mobility solution uses OpenXchange for collaboration capabilities, including contact and calendar management. 1&1 chose Funambol for its mobile email and PIM feature set for the mass market, source code transparency and low cost. By using Funambol software, 1&1 says it will differentiate its offerings and mobilize its email user base while attracting new customers for its affordable email services.

“After thoroughly researching the market for push email services, Funambol proved to offer the solution we were looking for,” says Andreas Gauger, 1&1 chairman of the board. “We believe in the success of software as a service and Funambol’s open source-based solution delivers on both our business and customer needs. We look forward to making this mobile service available to our customers soon.”

Service providers such as 1&1 are increasingly selecting open source-based software to provide mobile services. Earlier this year, Funambol announced an agreement with EarthLink and anticipates more will follow, generating a wide range of new low-cost mobile email and related services for the mass market.