Microsoft has won a major cloud migration contract with US telecommunications giant AT&T. Under the terms of the deal AT&T will make Azure the preferred cloud provider for its non-network applications, as part of a broader public cloud-first strategy. The deal will also include company-wide deployment of Microsoft 365.
The contract, which CNBC reports is worth over $2 billion, comes a day after IBM also clinched a sizeable AT&T contract (also reported to be worth $1 billion-plus). This was to modernise AT&T’s software applications and migrate them to IBM’s cloud. The network heavyweight will use Red Hat’s OpenShift to manage workloads.
)There’s a trade-off as part of that “multi-year strategic alliance”: under the terms of the agreement, IBM will make AT&T Business its primary provider of software defined networking. The two are working on joint go-to-market offerings as well.)
AT&T generated a huge $180 billion in revenues in 2018. It has been undergoing a sweeping restructure, recently also launching a standalone security division, AT&T Cybersecurity, which brings together 2018 cybersecurity acquisition AlienVault and its AT&T Cybersecurity Consulting and AT&T Managed Security Services divisions.
AT&T Microsoft Collaboration
AT&T Microsoft will bring to market integrated offerings spanning voice, collaboration and conferencing, IoT, public safety, and cybersecurity the two said: “The companies already have joint enterprise solutions for networking, IoT, and blockchain in market, and expect to announce additional services later in 2019.
“The two companies envision scenarios with 5G enabling near-instantaneous communications for a first responder who is using AI-powered live voice translation to quickly communicate with someone in need who speaks a different language.”
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said: “AT&T is at the forefront of defining how advances in technology, including 5G and edge computing, will transform every aspect of work and life… we are delighted that AT&T chose Microsoft to accelerate its innovation.”
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“AT&T and Microsoft are among the most committed companies to fostering technology that serves people,” said John Donovan, CEO, AT&T Communications. “By working together on common efforts around 5G, the cloud, and AI, we will accelerate the speed of innovation and impact for our customers and our communities.”
IBM meanwhile will be the primary developer and cloud provider for AT&T Business’s operational applications and will help manage the AT&T Communications IT infrastructure, on and off-premises and across different clouds –private and public. This approach will enable AT&T Business to build and deploy internal application workloads, and deliver new, innovative services.
“In AT&T Business, we’re constantly evolving to better serve business customers around the globe by securely connecting them to the digital capabilities they need,” said Thaddeus Arroyo, CEO of AT&T Business. “This includes optimizing our core operations and modernizing our internal business applications to accelerate innovation.”
