New Microsoft leasing arrangement to provide software services to students, campus units

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NEWS

For immediate use

Nov. 18, 1999 -- No. 710

BACKGROUNDER

New Microsoft leasing arrangement to provide software services to students, campus units

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has signed a new software licensing agreement with Microsoft to provide software for students as well as university-owned personal computers and Macintosh computers. Faculty and staff also will have the right to run one copy of the software -- for school-related activities -- on a laptop or desktop that they own or lease. The agreement, which has not been finalized, is expected to take effect after Thanksgiving.

Marian Moore, vice chancellor for information technology, told the UNC-CH Board of Trustees about the agreement today (Nov. 18) during an update on the Carolina Computing Initiative, a campuswide technology plan to enhance teaching, learning and research and equip students, faculty and key academic staff with computers.

The agreement will offer the following software programs to faculty, staff and student users:

All Windows operating system upgrades, including Windows 98, Windows NT and Windows 2000.

Microsoft Office Pro, including MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook and Publisher FrontPage.

Microsoft Visual Studio Pro, including Visual C++, Visual Basic, Visual FoxPro, Visual J++ and Visual InterDev.

Microsoft BackOffice Client.

The agreement will help UNC-CH departments, faculty, staff, and students save money. Last year the university spent about $400,000 on Microsoft products to meet only part of the software needs for campus computers. Under this agreement, UNC-CH will spend $300,000 to cover all university-owned PCs and Macs. Funding for this licensing agreement will come from part of a special allocation from UNC General Administration to help meet computing and teaching needs across the university system. At least 10 other UNC system campuses will benefit from the agreement initiated by UNC-Chapel Hill.

UNC-CH departments, programs, faculty and staff will be able to upgrade their software without cost, thus freeing up funds and technical staff previously required to buy new software and monitor licensing agreements.

All 24,000-plus students can benefit, too, regardless of whether they are participating in the Carolina Computing Initiative, which will require freshmen to own laptops beginning next fall. Students buying CCI laptops through Student Stores will save $50 on the purchase price because of the new agreement. Upon graduation, the software lease will automatically convert to a permanent license with Microsoft. Graduates will only have to pay for the cost of future upgrades.

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Source: Marian Moore, vice chancellor for information technology, (919) 962-7155 or marian_moore@unc.edu.

Web links: www.unc.edu/cci/