Lingerie purveyor Ann Summers has contracted managed services provider Claranet to take charge of the hosting and management of its web site.

Under the terms of the deal, Claranet will guarantee a minimum of 99.9 per cent uptime, along with 24-hour monitoring and support of the e-commerce site.

The Ann Summers portal allows users to browse and purchase products and play online games such as bingo. Claranet's responsibilities will now include protecting customers' personal details as they use these services.

The agreement also includes the provision of two new staff members: a customer service manager and a dedicated account manager who will advise Ann Summers on its ongoing IT strategy.