Planetary Networks

What Planetary Networks does

Planetary Networks GmbH is a Berlin-based hosting and cloud infrastructure provider founded around 2000 by Dennis-Oliver Tschech, serving German SMBs, mid-market firms, and select enterprise customers across the DACH region. The company operates its own infrastructure footprint across two geo-redundant Berlin data centers — Level 3 in Tempelhof and e-shelter in Spandau (Tier IV, DIN-ISO/IEC 27001 certified) — connected by two independent 10-Gigabit wavelengths 15+ km apart, peered at BCIX, and powered entirely by renewable energy. The CEO contributed to the DIN SPEC 27099 high-security network architecture standard, and the company holds TÜV SÜD ISO 9001:2015 certification audited without deviations across three consecutive cycles.

The product portfolio comprises subscription-based shared hosting (Planetary WebSpace), virtual private servers (Dynamic Server), dedicated Dell PowerEdge servers, co-location, hosted Zimbra email and collaboration (planetarymail), encrypted backup (planetary netbackup), and domain services — built on VMware virtualization, CloudLinux with Imunify360 security, R1Soft backup, Spamexperts spam filtering, cPanel management, and a proprietary DIN SPEC 27099-compliant three-tier network architecture, with an internally developed ProProject quality management system. Pricing ranges from €5/mailbox/month for planetarymail to €499/month for the high-end Dell R730 dedicated server, with one-time setup fees and per-GB add-ons, sold via direct consultative sales, self-service web orders, and an authorized reseller/Wiederverkäufer channel.

The business operates with 1-10 employees, has never raised external capital, and explicitly runs an ad-free, word-of-mouth-only growth model. Customer acquisition is entirely organic via referrals, direct outreach, and partner resellers, with named enterprise customers spanning food manufacturing (Carl Kühne KG), banking (Quirin Bank AG), telecom/eCommerce (eteleon AG), construction (Hanlo Haus), and creative services (schmiddesign GmbH).

Name

Planetary Networks

Legal name

Planetary Networks GmbH

Website

https://planetary-networks.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Planetary Networks GmbH is a Berlin-based hosting and cloud infrastructure provider offering shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, co-location, hosted Zimbra email (planetarymail), and encrypted backup, operating across two geo-redundant Berlin data centers for German SMBs, mid-market firms, and select enterprise customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Webhosting (Planetary WebSpace): Shared web hosting services from small personal pages to large corporate project sites, managed via cPanel, including domain registration, email accounts, MySQL databases, and daily backups. Billed monthly or annually.
2. Dynamic Server (VPS): Virtual private servers with flexible RAM, vCPU, storage (SAS or SSD), and traffic configurations. Scalable on-demand with load balancing. Additional revenue from optional storage, traffic overages, cPanel, R1Soft backup, CloudLinux and Imunify360 bundle add-ons.
3. Dedicated Server: Physical Dell PowerEdge servers with configurable hardware. Optional add-ons include cPanel (€45/month), CloudLinux (€15/month), R1Soft Backup (€15/month + storage), and server management services (Bronze/Silver/Gold tiers). Setup fees apply.
4. planetarymail (Hosted Zimbra): Hosted email and collaboration platform (Zimbra). Revenue from per-mailbox monthly subscriptions. Includes 1-month free trial, spam filter included. Supports per-account, per-seat billing model.
5. planetary netbackup: Encrypted online backup service with client for PC/Mac. Data encrypted on client machine, transmitted over secure connection to geographically separate Berlin data centers. planetary netbackup Enterprise supports database backup, unlimited backup sets, and parallel backup intervals.
6. Co-Location / Serverhousing: Colocation services in Planetary Networks' Berlin data centers, including network connectivity, power, physical security, and optional remote hands services. Revenue from rack space and connectivity fees.
7. Domain Registration: Domain registration services as intermediary between customer and registries (e.g., DENIC for .de domains). Domains included in some web hosting packages.
8. Email Migration (Audriga): Discounted mailbox migration service powered by Audriga at €10.00 incl. VAT per mailbox, enabling customers to migrate from previous providers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Planetary Networks GmbH provides premium web hosting, virtual and dedicated server infrastructure, hosted Zimbra-based email and collaboration (planetarymail), encrypted online backup (planetary netbackup), domain registration, and co-location services from its own geo-redundant data centers in Berlin. All services are delivered from two independent Berlin facilities connected by own routing with BCIX peering, targeting SMBs, mid-market firms, system houses, and demanding private customers in the DACH region.

Product overview

Planetary Networks offers a comprehensive hosting and cloud services portfolio based in Berlin, Germany. The product lineup includes: (1) planetarymail - a Zimbra-based hosted email and collaboration platform offering email, calendar, contacts, tasks, and file sharing; (2) planetary netbackup - encrypted backup solution with local client encryption and storage in geographically separate Berlin data centers; (3) Planetary WebSpace - shared web hosting managed via cPanel; (4) Dynamic Server - virtual private servers with flexible resource scaling; (5) Dedicated Server - physical Dell servers with various management tiers; plus domain services, co-location, and VMware-based cloud solutions. All services leverage the company's own infrastructure spanning two Berlin data centers (Level 3 and e-shelter) connected by independent fiber lines, with network peering at BCIX.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• planetarymail (Zimbra): Premium E-Mail and Collaboration platform based on Zimbra. Provides email, contacts, calendar, tasks, file management, and team collaboration features. An alternative to Microsoft Exchange Server hosted in Berlin data centers.
• planetary netbackup

Products and services

• Planetary WebSpace Shared web hosting service for small personal sites up to large corporate website networks, managed via cPanel, including .de/.com/.net/.org/.info/.biz domain registration, storage, MySQL databases, email accounts, traffic flatrate, and daily backups.
• Dynamic Server (VPS) Virtual private servers with flexible RAM, vCPU, storage (SAS or SSD), and traffic configurations; scalable on-demand with load balancing and optional CloudLinux/Imunify360, R1Soft, and cPanel add-ons.
• Dedicated Server Physical Dell PowerEdge servers (R220 and R730 models) with configurable hardware, optional cPanel (€45/month), CloudLinux (€15/month), R1Soft Backup (€15/month + storage), and server management tiers (Bronze/Silver/Gold) by quotation.
• planetarymail (Hosted Zimbra) Hosted email and collaboration platform based on Zimbra Collaboration, providing email, calendar, contacts, tasks, file storage, room and resource management, ActiveSync, WebDAV, offline WebGUI, and Outlook/Apple Mail/Thunderbird/KMail compatibility — positioned as a Microsoft Exchange alternative.
• planetary netbackup Encrypted online backup service with clients for Windows, Mac and Linux. Data is encrypted on the client machine and transmitted over a secure connection to two geographically separated Berlin data centers. planetary netbackup Enterprise supports database backup, unlimited backup sets, and parallel backup intervals.
• Co-Location / Serverhousing Colocation services in Planetary Networks' Berlin data centers, providing network connectivity, power, physical security (including biometric access), and optional remote hands services to customers housing their own hardware.
• Domain Registration

Quantifiable outcome

• CO2-neutral server operations through 100% renewable energy at both Berlin data centers
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• VMware (VSPP Program)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 December 2012Planetary Networks GmbH joined the VMware Service Provider Program (VSPP) in December 2012. This enables the company to offer VMware-based cloud solutions to customers. First product enabled by this partnership was the hosted Zimbra email and collaboration solution (planetarymail). The VSPP membership allows Planetary Networks to provide enterprise-grade virtualization infrastructure.
• BCIX (Berlin Commercial Internet Exchange)coreOthers · 10 October 2012Planetary Networks has been connected to BCIX (Berlin's largest internet exchange) since October 2012 via a 1 GBit connection. This supplements the two Tier 1 carrier connections (Level 3 and Telia). BCIX operates a switch-based network connecting multiple POP sites via 10 Gbit/s wavelengths. Notable peers include Google, Kabel Deutschland, and Versatel.
• CloudlinuxcoreTechnology or IntegrationCloudLinux OS partnership offering resource isolation (LVE), user separation preventing 'bad neighbor effect', CPU/IO/memory limits, and compatibility with cPanel. Offered as an alternative to standard CentOS/Ubuntu on Planetary Networks' Dynamic Servers. Bundled with Imunify360 security suite at discounted pricing.
• Imunify360coreTechnology or IntegrationImunify360 provides proactive security including real-time threat detection and blocking, automatic malware removal, and Web Application Firewall (WAF). Offered bundled with CloudLinux OS on Dynamic Servers at tiered pricing based on user count (Solo to Unlimited tiers). Protects against known and unknown web application attacks.
• cPanelcoreTechnology or IntegrationcPanel is offered as the standard server administration interface across all WebSpace plans (included), Dynamic Servers (€17.85/month/license), and Dedicated Servers (€45/month). Enables graphical server management including PHP configuration, email accounts, databases, DNS, SSL/TLS, and security settings without command-line expertise.
• Langenhorst GmbH (Effizienz-Bilanz)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerQuality management consulting partnership with Christoph M. Langenhorst of Langenhorst GmbH (Effizienz-Bilanz). Langenhorst developed the ProProject QM software tool and guided Planetary Networks through ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 9001:2015 certifications without deviations. Also serves as external data protection officer (Datenschutzbeauftragter) for the company.
• Level 3 CommunicationscoreOthersLevel 3 Communications (Tier 1 carrier) provides network connectivity infrastructure at the Berlin-Tempelhof data center. Planetary Networks operates on both floors of the Level 3 facility with 7,000 sqm of data center space. Level 3 facility runs on 100% renewable energy (green electricity).
• e-sheltercoreOtherse-shelter is the data center provider for Planetary Networks' second Berlin location (Spandau), the largest data center in Berlin with 13,000 sqm and Tier IV certification. Facility is DIN-ISO/IEC-27001 certified with maximum security measures including biometric access controls. Runs on 100% renewable energy.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• IONOS (1&1 IONOS): One of Europe's largest web hosting and cloud providers, offering shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, email, and managed cloud. Overlaps broadly with Planetary Networks' portfolio across all product lines but at vastly greater scale, with a wider geographic footprint and significant marketing investment.

Direct peers

• DomainFactory: German hosting provider (part of GoDaddy) offering shared hosting, servers, mail, and domains to SMBs and demanding consumers. Comparable SMB/consumer hosting mix, German data centers, and product portfolio overlap with Planetary WebSpace, planetarymail, and Dynamic Server.
• Mittwald: German hosting provider specializing in managed hosting for agencies, SMBs, and CMS-driven projects, with strong email/collab offerings. Comparable in target market (German SMB/agencies), product breadth (hosting, mail, servers), and German-only data center strategy.
• Hetzner Online: German hosting provider offering shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, and colocation across multiple German data centers. Highly comparable: SMB-to-enterprise German hosting market, own data center footprint, strong price-performance positioning, and a similar capital-efficient operating ethos.
• STRATO: Major German web hosting and mail/collaboration provider serving SMBs and consumers. Directly comparable product set (web hosting, mailboxes, domains, servers) targeting the same German-speaking SMB segment Planetary Networks serves.
• dogado: German managed hosting and cloud provider (formerly part of the Greatnet/New Work SE group) serving SMBs with hosting, mail, and managed servers. Closely comparable in target segment and German data-center-only positioning.
• Host Europe: UK-origin hosting provider (now part of GoDaddy) with significant German operations, offering hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, and managed cloud. Comparable product portfolio and German customer base; materially larger scale.
• netcup: German VPS, root-server, and web hosting provider known for aggressive pricing and self-service ordering. Directly comparable on VPS (Dynamic Server equivalent), dedicated servers, and shared hosting for technical SMB and prosumer customers in Germany.

Emerging players

• InterNetX: German domain registrar and hosting provider offering domains, SSL, servers, and managed hosting to resellers and SMBs. Comparable on the domain registration, server, and reseller-channel dimensions of Planetary Networks' offering.

Others

• Zimbra (Synacor / OpenSource publisher): The underlying email/collaboration platform Planetary Networks resells as a hosted service. Relevant as both a technology supplier and a competitive reference point for other Zimbra-hosting providers pursuing the same Exchange-alternative positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/planetarynet

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Planetary Networks