Ministry purchases 30,000 Microsoft licenses

Azerbaijan Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies has signed a three-year agreement with Microsoft for the purchase of software licenses for government agencies, the ministry informed on July 12.

The state agency noted that in accordance with the agreement it is planned to purchase 20,000 licenses for Microsoft software (Windows Pro, Office 365 ProPlus, Core CAL), as well as 10,000 licenses for universities.

Microsoft also offered the “Benefits for students” program, which provides free purchase of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office software for students of all higher education institutions of the country, that is about 150,000 people.

The second stage of cooperation between the ministry and Microsoft on software licensing of government agencies will be implemented in accordance with the agreement. As many as 10,000 computers were licensed earlier, in 2011, in executive offices of state agencies in which Windows, Office ProPlus and Core CAL were used.

The main objectives of the agreement are to save costs in this area, to improve the country’s position in the rating on the protection of intellectual property rights, to develop an innovation ecosystem, to attract foreign investment, as well as to increase the use of electronic services.

Using licensed software has a number of benefits, which include free technical support, free update of the software for a certain period, its stability, no viruses, etc.

The main goal of Microsoft in Azerbaijan is to offer the latest products and software designs that would contribute to the country's development through introduction into e-government, business administration, and education.

In general, information and communication technologies sector is one of the priority areas in Azerbaijan, which has already had great achievements in this sector. Creation and development of the e-government system, expansion of the broadband internet services, launching of the telecommunication and low-orbit satellites, and many other steps are the evidence of Azerbaijan’s success in this sphere.

Azerbaijan, which is a regional leader in the ICT sector, intends to expand its international cooperation to further develop the sector.The income obtained in the sector in Azerbaijan is projected to hit $9 billion by 2020.