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U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force and DISA Boost Access to Microsoft Technologies Via Modernization Pact
[January 10, 2013]

U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force and DISA Boost Access to Microsoft Technologies Via Modernization Pact


Jan 10, 2013 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) -- In an effort to modernize technology infrastructure, reduce costs and foster new levels of cross-agency collaboration, the U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force and Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) are expanding access to Microsoft solutions by entering into a transformative three-year Joint Enterprise Licensing Agreement for enterprise licenses and software assurance.



The agreement provides all three organizations with a single vehicle for accessing the latest Microsoft technologies in support of top IT priorities around datacenter consolidation, collaboration, cybersecurity, mobility, cloud computing and big data.

According to a release, this is the most comprehensive licensing agreement Microsoft Corp. has ever established with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), covering nearly 75 percent of all DoD personnel. The net new contract was awarded to Insight Public Sector, a division of Insight Enterprises Inc., one of the largest global Microsoft Large Account Resellers.


As part of this agreement, all three organizations can begin using the newest versions of Microsoft products, including Microsoft Office 2013, SharePoint 2013 Enterprise and Windows 8. The ability to standardize on SharePoint 2013 Enterprise will unlock new levels of cross-agency information sharing through improved enterprise search and social communications features while powering advanced business intelligence and reporting capabilities. Access to Office 2013 will equip each organization with the latest versions of productivity tools that personnel rely on every day, including Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint. The increasingly mobile DoD workforce will also use Windows 8 to empower productivity from any location, and any supported device, while taking advantage of enhanced security. The U.S. Army's Network Enterprise Technology Command headquartered at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., and the Air Force Program Executive Office for Business and Enterprise Systems at Maxwell Air Force Base-Gunter Annex in Alabama, have been working closely with Microsoft on achieving Army Golden Master and Air Force Standard Desktop Configuration compliance for Windows 8.

"Microsoft has longstanding relationships with the U.S. Army, the U.S. Air Force and DISA, and we are honored to expand our support of ongoing technology modernization efforts across all three organizations," said Tim Solms, general manager, Microsoft Department of Defense Business. "This agreement enables us to provide the best technology tools to an incredibly broad range of servicemen and servicewomen across the DoD, and we are looking forward to implementing to support their mission goals." More information: http://www.microsoft.com/government/en-us/pages/default.aspx www.insight.com ((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected]))

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