After successfully assembling a bundle for the U.S. Defense Department, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is pushing and signing more deal with foreign governments to offer similar cloud-based infrastructure packages. This is according to sources that are familiar with the matter.
The Defense Department’s Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure, or JEDI, is a cloud-based platform that offers computing and storage resources at all government security classification levels. In addition, the infrastructure is also used in devices that work offline and be able to sync back into the cloud network. The 10 billion JEDI contract was awarded to Microsoft in October 2019 and will last for 10-years.
Building on JEDI success
Microsoft’s win of the JEDI contract has motivated the tech company to pursue similar contracts with other foreign governments. This is according to a report by CNBC. The company is using its contract with the Pentagon as a blueprint to forge similar contracts for cloud-infrastructure packages with other governments.
The tech giant has seen growing interest in similar relations from other governments around the world. For the JEDI project, Microsoft plans to use people who have sufficient government security clearances. Instead of building new technologies, the company will offer a group of existing products and services at a customized price.
The JEDI project is currently held up in a court battle after Amazon filed a legal challenge. Despite the court challenge, Microsoft sees JEDI as a blueprint to seek similar deals with other governments. With the JEDI held up in a court battle, Microsoft has been using its employees to work on other foreign governments’ cloud projects. This is after it became certain that the JEDI project would be put on hold.
Meeting the cloud needs of the public sector
The move to explore more territories is an indication that the software company is committed to widening its cloud services business to meet the needs of the public sector while at the same time maintaining a close relationship with the Trump administration. The close working relationship with the White House has already paid off after Trump brokered a deal for Microsoft to acquire Chinese social media app TikTok. The Trump administration gave the app’s parent company 90 days to be acquired by a U.S company or exist in the U.S in an escalating U.S-China trade war.
