Old Mutual goes Vista

Old Mutual SA has signed a licensing deal with Microsoft to place Windows Vista on at least 20 000 desktops in its African and some European affiliates by the end of 2008, says the London-based financial services group.

The value of the deal has not been disclosed.

The South African company, Old Mutual (SA), obtained a mandate to negotiate the deal with Microsoft on behalf of the entire group, including its subsidiaries and affiliates located in Africa, Europe, Asia and the US. In the past, it left IT purchases up to its individual companies, while doing some central system development.

The contract, signed by Old Mutual (SA) CIO Theo Nkone, became effective on 25 June. The various global entities within the Old Mutual group will enrol to participate in the agreement at a time that suits their IT deployment strategies. Nkone says the deal allows for predictable fixed pricing over the ongoing period of the agreement.

When implemented, the deal means Microsoft's Windows Vista and Office 2007 become the de facto standard on all desktops at Old Mutual.

The deal was negotiated primarily out of Microsoft's Cape Town and Johannesburg offices, with some support from its Middle East and Africa office, in Dubai.

According to Old Mutual, the contract has been structured to have an enterprise element that consists of the desktop roll-out and a transactional purchase element that allows its companies to buy software as needed.

Derek van Rooyen, Old Mutual (SA) IT contracts manager, says the lead currency for the deal is US dollars, but the individual companies will use their country currency equivalents to buy their software.

Matt Roux, managing architect at Old Mutual (SA), says the first phase will be the detailed design of the implementation of the agreement for three to four months, with roll-out beginning in the first quarter of 2008.

Roux says information security is a prime consideration for Old Mutual. He notes it is fully aware of the Microsoft licence conditions that - if some features of Vista are activated and used -information will be sent back to the US IT group's Redmond headquarters.

"Safeguarding information is a non-negotiable issue for Old Mutual. We are aware that the Microsoft Vista privacy statement says choice and control can be selected by the user to either add or disable some of those functions that turn on by default and that these things are at our discretion," he says.

Nkone says: "Old Mutual's strategy is to continue to endorse Microsoft as the product of choice for its desktops. Old Mutual has been running the Windows 2000 platform and Office 2000 productivity suite for the past seven years, and it has become necessary to bring the software up to the latest available standards."

Nino Russo, CTO at Old Mutual, says a major benefit of the deal is that the Old Mutual Group companies globally can purchase Microsoft products that will result in substantial savings for the group. This is especially relevant for the smaller global companies, which purchase software at significantly higher prices.

Russo says software assurance has been included in the deal that enables Old Mutual to receive additional value and return on the Microsoft technology investments in the form of new benefits and enhanced assistance. Software product updates will also be provided to business units that enrol under the enterprise agreement.

This deal represents a win-win and moves the relationship between Old Mutual Group (SA) and Microsoft from a transactional to a collaborative and value-based relationship, says Tina Angelos, corporate account manager, Microsoft Cape Town.