The US government issued a record $7 billion information technology (IT) contract to a single private company, according to an article in the New York Times. Electronic Data Systems Corp. (EDS), the winning bidder, has been commissioned to build and maintain an internal computer network called the Navy-Marine Corps Intranet, which will link sailors and Marines in 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guantanamo Bay (Cuba) and Iceland, with ships at sea connected by satellites.
The Times article wrote of the record contract, “The award represents the first time a branch of the military has turned over to a private company the responsibility and risk of operating and maintaining its entire network of computer systems.” Among sub-contractors that will also be brought into the project are WorldCom, Cisco Systems, Dell Computer and Microsoft.
The system should be fully operational by mid-2003. Estimates are that the new system will save $400,000 annually.
Based on a New York Times article by Kenneth N. Gilpin
