BT has landed a $40 million contract to provide software-defined network services to the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. With the contract in hand, BT will provide communications services to embassies and consulates in 120 countries. The initial contract is for four years, but there's an option to extend it to nine years. BT won the contract in a public, European Union-wide tender process.
"I am really proud that the Dutch government has put their trust in us to connect their embassies and consulates around the world," said BT's Joris van Oers, managing director, resources, manufacturing and logistics & Europe, in a statement. "We can build on many years of experience serving public sector customers such as EU institutions and governments in many countries, and we are happy to support the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on their journey into a more digital future.”
BT will provide the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs with WAN, LAN and wireless LAN services. BT didn't say how it was provisioning the services, but in November it announced a new generation of cloud-optimized managed services with the first offering based on VMware's VeloCloud SD-WAN technology. BT is using VMware's technology for the orchestrator and software, including its cloud on ramp capability in order to deliver digital services to its customers.
Dating back several years ago, BT previously deployed SD-WAN solutions from Nuage Networks and Cisco, including Cisco IWAN and Cisco Meraki SD-WAN.
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