zConnect was formed originally in 1997 as Atl-Connect Internet Services. The name was changed to zConnect in 2004 in order to better reflect the nationwide reach of our services. The company is privately held by Eric Longman and Bud Ducey. Following are some highlights of our growth over the years.
Notable Events
1996: Atl-Connect started doing business. The company was initially owned by Steven Pierson, and was hosted
from a spare bedroom in his house. At the time, Atl-Connect was one of only a few Internet Service Providers to
offer web hosting on the Windows platform with support for Active Server Pages.
May, 1999: The company was acquired by Eric Longman and Bud Ducey for an undisclosed sum of cash. The servers
were moved from Mr. Pierson's spare bedroom to Mr. Longman's basement.
February, 2000: Began offering domain registration services.
October, 2001: Atl-Connect's hosting operation was relocated to a premier facility in downtown Atlanta. Upstream
bandwidth increased nearly 10 times, and reliability improved beyond already impressive levels.
December, 2001: Launched Linux hosting options.
January, 2002: Partnered with Broadlink and introduced AirSpeed fixed wireless service as an alternative to DSL.
March, 2002: Partnered with ISAT Platform and introduced SkySpeed satellite broadband service as an alternative to DSL.
July, 2002: Broadlink goes out of business; fixed wireless never did catch on in the Atlanta area.
July, 2002: Provided programming for BreezeNet Marketing's rental car Compare Guide, which quotes multiple rental car
companies in real time. In late 2003, BreezeNet would be purchased by Priceline.com, due in part to the success of
this system.
May, 2004: Changed the company name to zConnect to reflect nationwide reach of our services.
June, 2004: Expanded dial-up services with a new nationwide footprint and
nearly 8,000 dialup numbers. Introduced
Accelerated Dial-Up.
August, 2004: Began offering AdvantageConnect
fundraising program to help churches,
schools and other organizations raise funds.
November, 2005: Doubled space at Internap's co-location facility in downtown
Atlanta, GA.
June, 2006: Completed acquisition of Secure Online Backup Service customers
from Southeastern Computer Associates.
July, 2006: Planned expansion of co-location space to a second facility in
southwest Atlanta.
Principals
Eric Longman
Mr. Longman has over 15 years of experience in Information Technology and Services. He was Vice President and
Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of CMA Consulting, a technology consulting firm in Marietta, Georgia. Prior to
that, he was the Director of Internet Strategy and CTO for a large receivables management firm, where he oversaw
a $1.5 million Year 2000 renovation effort, among other projects. Mr. Longman has extensive experience in Internet
technologies. He serves as an Elder at Rivercliff Lutheran Church in Sandy
Springs, GA.
Bud Ducey
Mr. Ducey's background includes nearly 30 years of diversified experience in Information Technology and Services.
Previously, Mr. Ducey was Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of CMA Consulting, and Chief Information
Officer at Nationwide Credit, Inc. He also served as Chief Information Officer at Harland, a $700+ million financial
services company in Atlanta, Georgia.
06/01:
New Service: Online Backup Services
03/14:
zConnect selects Capital Merchant Solutions
as their preferred Merchant Account Provider
09/28:
zConnect Provides Internet Time Services
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