Most Web sites have a lot of content that they have to host somewhere. Whether you operate a shopping cart, a blog or something else altogether, even small sites have to find places for their core files, theme elements, images, audio, video and other media content.

Previously, all of that content was hosted on the server itself. If you had an account with Hostgator, you had all of your content on that same server.

But that is becoming less and less true as media hosts and content delivery networks (CDNs) are changing the way we host. For example, if you want to host video content, you now most likely publish it to YouTube or a similar video site for easy embedding. Likewise, you can upload audio using Talkshoe and place it in your site using number of embeddable players.

These networks are changing the way we are hosting content and that, in turn, is changing hosting in general. In short, the way we buy and look at hosting in five years may be very different than it is today and it isn’t just the rise in cloud/grid hosting that’s to blame.

So what changes can we expect? Here are just a few possibilities.

Spreading The Love

This is an increasingly common hosting structure for a blog, including self-hosted sites:

1. Theme Files: Using W3 Total Cache, all theme files are hosted on a CDN such as Amazon S3/Cloudfront. This includes the files used to build the theme as well as CSS, JavaScript and other static files that make it up.
2. Image Files: As with theme files, using W3 Total Cache, theme files are uploaded automatically to the CDN. However, even without W3 Total Cache, many host their images on sites such as Flickr or Photobucket to reduce server load and speed up site loading time.
3. Video: Virtually all sites use YouTube or a similar video host for uploading and hosting video. This is to make the video easier to view (easier playback for visitors), gain new exposure on the video sites and avoid keeping large files on the server.
4. Audio: The same as with video, audio is more commonly being hosted on dedicated hosts, especially for podcasters who have very large audio files.
5. Other Media Content: Other media content, including games and large downloads, are often just linked to or embedded from other sources. For example, many Web game sites off the ability to embed games elsewhere and those offering software for download often just link to CNet’s Download.com service rather than host the files themselves.

What this means is that the only elements actually hosted on the main server are the databases and core CMS files. All of the media and downloadable content are elsewhere on the Web.

This means that many of the metrics once used to determine which host met your needs best are now almost meaningless. For example, storage space requirements of such a blog are minimal as are bandwidth requirements. However, server processing power and speed are going to be come more crucial.

Hosts are already responding to these shifts…

How Hosting is Changing

Though many of the changes in hosting are likely to be coming in the next few years, there are a few noticeable changes that have already taken place.

1. The De-Emphasis of Bandwith/Storage: Some hosts now offer “unlimited” accounts that don’t actively meter bandwidth or storage at all. Others offer relatively small amounts of both with the expectation that larger files will be hosted elsewhere. This was once the main marketing point for Web hosts but now is relegated to either a gimmick or a non-issue.
2. Charging for CPU Usage: Media Temple is currently the only major host that actively sets limits on processing power per account, known as GPUs, but the acceptance of the practice makes it likely others will follow suit.
3. Favoring VPS Hosting: VPS hosting is a more natural fit for this style of site-building. Favoring processing power and memory over hard drive space and bandwidth. Many hosts that previously only offered shared accounts, including Dreamhost and Hostgator, now offer VPS services and promote them heavily.

The simple truth is that, even just a few years ago, a hosting account was primarily a place to dump your static files and maybe run a basic CMS (if even that). However, management systems have gotten more complex and alternative hosting arrangements have reduced the importance of hosts as a file dump. Hosts are responding, developing new products and even new business models to stay ahead of the changes, but the biggest change is on the user’s side in that it is now easier than ever for a customer to pick up stakes and move.

After all, if you don’t have to move gigs of media and static files, it’s trivial to backup your account and move it elsewhere. The less you have with a host, the less likely you are to be loyal to them through any problems they have. That’s a fact hosts are well aware of and, hopefully, is motivating them to provide even better service and better prices.

Bottom Line

Web hosting has changed a great deal in the past decade. Going from a mere place to dump filed publicly to a service that has to process data more than store anything. Where once a host was merely a place to store things on the Web, it’s now more of a way to run a site that in turn access files and content found elsewhere.

This trend of decentralized hosting is only going to grow and hosts are responding the best they can. However, it’s consumers that are the real winners. The more alternatives for hosting content, the better, and the easier it is to move hosts, the more power consumers have to drive better deals and get better service.

There is indeed a hosting revolution afoot, but it is one that consumers should embrace and enjoy, not shy away from.

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