Launch Of Eduserv Campus Agreement Ensures UK Universities And Colleges Of All Sizes To Benefit From Preferential Microsoft Pricing

Published 22nd November 2007

Up to 650 Higher and Further Education Institutions to Benefit from £1m Cost Savings through New Agreement...

Eduserv to Launch Portal to Enable Institutions to Share Information and Best Practice on Microsoft Products

Bath, 22 November 2007 – Eduserv, the not-for-profit IT services group, today announces that its software and information licensing service has signed an agreement with Microsoft to ensure that all UK universities and colleges will benefit from preferential prices on a range of Microsoft products, including MS Office, SQL Server and Windows upgrades. Eduserv will also launch a portal in early 2008 for HE and FE institutions to share information and best practice on Microsoft products.

Preferential pricing has previously been available to institutions with more than 3,000 staff via the Microsoft Campus scheme. However, this represented a very small number of institutions – approximately 20. Eduserv’s new agreement will enable up to 150 HE and 500 FE institutions to enrol in Microsoft Campus and benefit from preferential pricing.

Microsoft products are sold to universities and colleges through certified resellers. Eight resellers (Bytes, Civica, Insight, Online Computers, Phoenix Software, Pugh, SCC and Viglen) have been chosen through a tender by Eduserv to take part in the scheme.

The price an institution pays for Microsoft software will depend on the reseller they choose, as each reseller’s package includes different additional services. For example, institutions may choose to gain access to online procurement tools and to commissioned reports by the analyst group Gartner. Pricing and services information will be published on the Eduserv website, which makes comparison between different resellers’ offerings more transparent, enabling universities and colleges to determine more easily which reseller offers the products and services that best suit the institutions’ needs.

Ian Cook, Operations Manager, Manchester Metropolitan University, comments: “The new agreement will provide immediate financial benefit for those institutions who have less than 3,000 staff. In the case of my own institution, we’ll have considerable savings that can be re-invested elsewhere.”

Stephen Butcher, CEO of Eduserv, comments: “Aggregating demand for Microsoft products through this agreement will result in a saving of £1m for HE institutions alone. Yet, even more valuable than the financial benefits will be the portal, which we’re developing with Microsoft. It will enable institutions to come together and share their thoughts on different Microsoft technologies and services. This open platform will be a valuable information resource for hundreds of institutions across the UK.”

Steve Beswick, Director of Education and Charities at Microsoft Limited says: “Microsoft is pleased to be working with Eduserv to share knowledge on optimising infrastructure across the sector. We at Microsoft believe that access to excellent and affordable software and collaborating on best practice across the sector can reduce total cost of ownership and increase service levels”.