The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded a five-year, $9.7 billion contract to Microsoft and Dell to consolidate and streamline Microsoft software licenses across numerous military and intelligence services. The agreement, dubbed the "Microsoft Department of War Enterprise Software Agreement II Core Enterprise Technology Agreement," aims to create a more efficient, centralized software purchasing vehicle for systems including the Office suite and Azure cloud services.
Under the terms of the deal, Dell will act as the sole software middle-man for the contract. The Pentagon anticipates that this consolidation will save U.S. taxpayers approximately $422 million annually. Following the announcement, Dell's stock price reached an all-time high of $305 in after-hours trading, signaling a strong positive reaction from investors to the news.