Sounds soooooo good.
--
Compaq deal with US postal
service may be worth billions
by Clare Haney, IDG News Service\San Francisco Bureau
February 01, 2001, 16:33
Compaq Computer Corp. Thursday announced the signing of a major
contract with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) which could be worth
billions of U.S. dollars, according to a Compaq spokesperson.
Due to kick off at the end of the first quarter, the contract will allow
the mail carrier's 800,000 staff to each buy up to two Compaq
Presario Internet PCs for home use over the life of the three-year
deal, according to Barbara Crystal, Compaq spokesperson.
"The deal is huge; if you figure a PC costs $1,000, it runs into billions
of dollars," Crystal said. Although Compaq has signed similar employee
deals in the past, the company has yet to do "anything of this
magnitude," she said.
The USPS staff will be able to choose how they want their Compaq
desktop or notebook PCs configured using a customized Web site or a
toll-free phone number. They will also be able to choose from a
variety of Internet services, Crystal said.
Compaq will develop a customized news and information portal so that
USPS staff can securely access the U.S. Postal Service's intranet via
a VPN (virtual private network). The computer vendor is also talking
with ISPs (Internet service providers) to ensure that USPS staff will
pay reduced rates for Net access.
USPS, based in Washington, D.C., couldn't be reached for comment
this afternoon.
Compaq's relationship with the USPS dates back to 1979 and has
covered a range of Compaq products from desktops through to
servers, according to Crystal. During the last six years, Compaq has
shipped more than $1 billion of its computers and services to USPS.
Compaq, in Houston, can be reached at compaq.com.
USPS, based in Washington, D.C., can be reached via the Internet at
usps.gov. |
