• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Sprint Announces IT Services Contracts with IBM and EDS

Posted on: Monday, 15 September 2003, 06:00 CDT

OVERLAND PARK, Kan., Sept. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sprint today announced separate contracts with IBM Global Services and EDS to provide application development and maintenance support for selected software systems.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001013/SPRINTLOGO )

"Our agreements with EDS and IBM provide Sprint accelerated access to world-class capabilities and technology in a more flexible and cost-effective manner," said Michael W. Stout, chief information officer, Sprint. "By moving selected software application development and maintenance functions to these suppliers, Sprint can focus on its core telecommunications business, while ensuring customers receive unparalleled quality of service."

Over the five-year terms of the contracts, Sprint expects to reduce costs associated with the selected applications by $150 million.

"Sprint will benefit from EDS' global leadership in the applications management arena, with more than one million applications supported for our global clients," said Dan Zadorozny, vice president, EDS Applications Delivery. "We plan to leverage our expertise with the world's leading telecommunications companies and our 12 years of supporting applications in a global environment to help Sprint achieve cost savings and focus on its core business."

"This represents a significant opportunity for Sprint to maximize its ability to address the rapidly changing telecommunications marketplace," said Dean Douglas, vice president, telecommunications industry, IBM Global Services. "IBM is sharing experience learned from modernizing and transforming its own applications, as well as applications for other clients. Sprint will benefit from IBM's knowledge and experience in managing telecommunications application portfolios."

IBM and EDS will immediately begin working with Sprint to transition the selected applications. Sprint will continue to actively manage and monitor the selected systems and applications for development and compliance processes.

Forward Looking Statement

This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of securities laws. The statements in this news release regarding the business outlook and expected performance as well as other statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. The words "estimate,""project,""intend,""expect,""believe," and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are estimates and projections reflecting management's judgment and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements. With respect to these forward-looking statements, Sprint has made assumptions regarding, among other things, customer and network usage, customer growth, pricing, costs to acquire customers and to provide services, the timing of various events and the economic environment.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from estimates or projections contained in the forward-looking statements include:

-- extent and duration of the current economic downturn;

-- the effects of mergers and consolidations within the

telecommunications industry;

-- the impact of any unusual items resulting from ongoing evaluations of

Sprint's business strategies;

-- the impact of new, emerging and competing technologies on Sprint's

business; and

-- the possibility of changes in political or other factors such as

monetary policy, legal and regulatory changes including the impact of

the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (Telecom Act), or other external

factors over which Sprint has no control.

Sprint believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable; however, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations and speak only as of the date of this release. Sprint is not obligated to publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this release. Sprint provides a detailed discussion of risk factors in periodic SEC filings, including its 2002 Form 10-K, and you are encouraged to review these filings.

About Sprint

Sprint is a global integrated communications provider serving more than 26 million customers in over 100 countries. With approximately 70,000 employees worldwide and nearly $27 billion in annual revenues, Sprint is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying network technologies, including the United States' first nationwide, all-digital fiber-optic network and an award-winning Tier 1 Internet backbone. Sprint provides local voice and data services in 18 states and operates the largest 100 percent digital, nationwide PCS wireless network in the United States. For more information, visit http://www.sprint.com/ .

About IBM Global Services

IBM Global Services is the world's largest information technology services and consulting provider, generating over $36 billion in 2002. Approximately 180,000 professionals serve customers in over 160 countries, providing the entire spectrum of customers' e-business needs -- from the business transformation and industry expertise of IBM Business Consulting Services to hosting, infrastructure, technology design and training services. IBM Global Services delivers integrated, flexible and resilient processes -- across companies and through business partners -- that enable customers to maximize the opportunities of an on-demand business environment. For more information, visit http://www.ibm.com/ .

About EDS

EDS, the premier global outsourcing services company, delivers superior returns to clients through its cost-effective, high-value services model. EDS' core portfolio comprises information-technology and business process outsourcing services, as well as information-technology transformation services. EDS' two complementary, subsidiary businesses are A.T. Kearney, one of the world's leading high-value management consultancies, and PLM Solutions, a leader in product data management, collaboration and product design software. With 2002 revenue of $21.5 billion, EDS is ranked 80th on the Fortune 500. The company's stock is traded on the New York and London stock exchanges. For more information, visit www.eds.com .