Emirates Post continues to enjoy benefits of Microsoft Enterprise Agreement

The licensing agreement provides Emirates Post with a host of benefits alongside licensing for its key Microsoft applications. The agreement was signed by Khaled Ebrahim Shahdoor, Assistant Director General, Information Affairs Emirates Post, and Abdullah Lootah, Public Sector Manager, Microsoft South Gulf, in the presence of Ihab M Sahili, Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft partner ITQAN Al Bawardi Computers at Gitex today.

Emirates Post was the first federal government department to sign an Enterprise Agreement with Microsoft three years ago. The licensing agreement covers applications including Microsoft Office, Exchange 2003, Windows 2003 and Active Directory, SQL Server 2000, Share Point Portal Server 2003, Microsoft Operation Manager Server and System Management Server 2003 that are in use in Emirates Post branches and offices across the UAE. The organization decided to renew its agreement after assessing the value added benefits that Enterprise Agreement customers can leverage on.

"Emirates Post has enjoyed a strong relationship with Microsoft over the past three years since signing this agreement, and we are very happy to renew this agreement for another three years," said Khaled Ebrahim Shahdoor. "The agreement not only makes our software licensing more cost effective and easier to manage, but the extra benefits that Microsoft offers in terms of enhanced support and training help to make our staff much more productive when using Microsoft solutions."

The Enterprise Agreement provides Emirates Post with considerable discounts on the cost of software, and also entitles Emirates Post to upgrade its software when new versions are released, at no licensing cost. Microsoft provides support services for free, and also offers enhanced support through the TechNet Online Concierge Chat service, a web-based one-on-one chat service that helps users to get help with their technical issues. Corporate Error Reporting (CER), also provide the customer's IT personnel with a clear and easy way to track error reporting and fixes, while the Windows Pre-installation Environment (WinPE) streamlines desktop update management.

In order to ensure that Emirates Post staff get the most out of their software, the agreement also includes free vouchers towards training with Microsoft Certified Technical Education Centers (CTECs). Employees are also able to become more productive and to maximize use of Microsoft Office System, thanks to the Home Use Program, which allows staff to use key products from home. The Employee Purchase Program (EPP) also offers Emirates Post personnel a significant discount on Microsoft's consumer products.

"More and more governmental entities are realizing the value of Microsoft Enterprise Agreements. Emirates Post was one of the first customers in the region to sign an Enterprise Agreement, and we are very pleased that they have seen the value of this agreement and have decided to renew it. An Enterprise Agreement is a gateway to a world of benefits and added value services that our clients enjoy and feel from the first days of being part of such relationship," said Abdullah Lootah. "Our challenge is to provide Emirates Post with even more services and quality value-added benefits. The trust that they have in us makes us more responsible and more eager to serve them in better and smarter ways. We have gone beyond the customer-supplier relationship to being real partners, understanding each others needs and business objectives and plan our joint initiatives accordingly."