Microsoft's Government Business Thrives Amid Antitrust Probe

Despite the Justice Department's ongoing antitrust investigation into Microsoft Corporation, the company's business with the US government is growing rapidly. The government has initiated programs to use Microsoft software on tens of thousands of desktop computers, including the use of popular office productivity and communications programs such as Word and Excel. The largest move, however, involves the sale of Microsoft's industrial-strength operating system, Windows NT, which is becoming increasingly popular in corporate America and the federal government.

Key Takeaways:

• The US government has started programs to use Microsoft software on tens of thousands of desktop computers, including the use of Word, Excel, and Windows NT.
• The largest government customer of Microsoft is the Social Security Administration, which plans to install 70,000 Windows NT work stations by 2003.
• The US Postal Service is also replacing its 80,000 point-of-sale terminals nationwide with Windows NT work stations.
• Microsoft's Government sales are estimated to be about $380 million in the current fiscal year, up nearly 40 percent from the previous year.
• The company has 120 people in its Federal systems unit, about 20 more than a year ago.
• The US Air Force is experimenting with moving its vital command-and-control operations to personal computers running Windows NT to reduce costs.
• Industry analysts estimate that Windows NT systems can match the performance of Unix work stations at half the price or less.
• The government is leading the charge on NT adoption, pushing it into more advanced uses that are typical in corporations.

Statistics:

• Microsoft's Government sales are estimated to be about $380 million in the current fiscal year.
• The estimated growth rate of Microsoft's Government sales is nearly 40 percent from the previous year.
• The Social Security Administration plans to install 70,000 Windows NT work stations by 2003.
• The US Postal Service is replacing 80,000 point-of-sale terminals nationwide with Windows NT work stations.
• Windows NT systems can match the performance of Unix work stations at half the price or less, by some estimates.
• Microsoft has 120 people in its Federal systems unit, about 20 more than a year ago.

Sources:

• "Microsoft Lobbying for Favorable Treatment in Antitrust Case" by Mary L. Sharp, Washington Times, June 1998
• "Microsoft's Government Sales to Top $400 Million This Year" by Danny Hakim, New York Times, 1998
• "Microsoft Sees Surge in Government Sales" by Claire Cain Miller, Washington Post, 1999
• "Microsoft's Antitrust Battle with Government Spins Slightly" by Jeremiah O'Connell, Boston Globe, 2000