SoftLayer

SoftLayer partners and customers need to be running Windows Server 2008 in order to leverage WebMatrix. As a special deal, SoftLayer says it will give a $40 per month credit for the first six months of service to the first 1,000 customers who order dedicated servers with any version of Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 with WebMatrix installed. That’s a long way of saying: Sign up now for a discount.

We’re intrigued by WebMaxtix because it allows partners and customers to build web applications on popular platforms like WordPress, Joomla!, Drupal and Umbraco. Moreover, WebMatrix supports both MySQL and Microsoft SQL Server databases — a clear sign that Microsoft is pushing beyond its own applications on the web.

Meanwhile, SoftLayer seems to be gaining more momentum with channel partners and customers. The company last month announced a record-setting Q2 2011 results.The company has reached $83 million in quarterly revenues, serving over 26,000 customers in more than 140 countries, surpassing 85,000 servers under management, and opening a new data center in San Jose, Calif. The company already has data centers in Dallas, Houston, Seattle and Washington, D.C.