That $ 10 billion contract for the Pentagon cloud that is tempting Microsoft and Amazon

The Department of Defense has torn up the old contract and now wants to rely on more cloud providers. Amazon re-enters the field after the first assignment to Microsoft alone

The Pentagon Photo by David Mark from Pixabay A $ 10 billion match, coveted for the prestige that the contractor would have provided: working for the Pentagon providing ten years of multi-cloud services needed by the US Department of Defense. The Jedi project (acronym for Joint enterprise defense infrastructure cloud) was a dish at first promised in full to Microsoft but now the Redmond company will have to compete for the award of a new contract to be shared in competition with competitors, Amazon in the first place.

The body that controls the US military has overturned a decision taken in the Trump era, disputed since 2019 by the Seattle company, which had filed a lawsuit denouncing "blunders", the result of "improper pressure from Trump" . The contract was pending for two years, but as of September 2020 the Department of Defense had reconsidered the proposals, calling Microsoft's best.

In April, however, a judge had refused to reject the due to Amazon, letting the issue evolve until the new Pentagon decision. The government body explained that "given the evolution of requirements, the increased controls on the cloud and the developments in the sector, the Jedi cloud contract no longer meets our needs", announcing the willingness to draw up a new contract, presumably on conditions different economic, which will include the same Amazon or other individuals who wish to participate.

The orientation of the administration led by the president of the United States, Joe Biden, is opposite to that of its predecessor, aiming to parcel out the assignment of the program among different companies, with the aim of avoiding the the entire project is linked to the suppliers of a single assignee. For now the only ones able to satisfy the needs of the department are Amazon and Microsoft, but among the companies that could fall, following market research, there are Google, IBM and Oracle.

The Pentagon explained that the cloud provider for the new contract will have to meet several criteria, such as working on information on three levels (unclassified, secret and top secret), be usable worldwide and have controls of first-rate cybersecurity. The new project is expected to last five years and the first assignment will have to be assigned by April.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon's decision has already had a first effect: Amazon shares have risen by 4.7% ( are worth $ 3,675.74), “helping” Jeff Bezos solidify his position as the richest person on the planet. According to Bloomberg, his personal fortune now stands at $ 211 billion.


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Topics

Amazon Cloud computing Microsoft United States globalData.fldTopic = "Amazon, Cloud computing, Microsoft, United States"

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