[kictanet] UK government plans switch from Microsoft Office to open source

[Evans Ikua]

*"Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude plans to standardise on open
formats to cut costs on Office suite and break 'oligopoly' of IT
suppliers"*<http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jan/29/uk-government-plans-switch-to-open-source-from-microsoft-office-suite>
Maude will add: "Technical standards for document formats may not sound
like the first shot in a revolution.

"But be in no doubt: the adoption of compulsory standards in government
threatens to break open Whitehall's lock-in to proprietary formats. In turn
we will open the door for a host of other software providers." Maude will
also hail changes designed to increase the number of small and medium-sized
companies (SMEs) winning public sector contracts.
"In the civil service there was a sense that if you hired a big
multi-national, who everyone knew the name of, you'd never be fired.

"We weren't just missing out on innovation, we were paying top dollar for
yesterday's technology.

"One great example of the potential from small businesses was when we
re-tendered a hosting contract.

"The incumbent big supplier bid £4m; a UK-based small business offered to
do it for £60,000.

"We saved taxpayers a whopping 98.5%. I don't think we can make savings of
that scale everywhere but hard-working people expect us to try as hard as
we possibly can."

Read More<http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jan/29/uk-government-plans-switch-to-open-source-from-microsoft-office-suite>

*The writing is on the wall.*
-- 


*----------------------------------------------------Kind Regards,Evans
Ikua,*
lanetconsulting.com,
lpi-eastafrica.org,
Skype: evans.ikua
Twitter: @ikuae
Cell: +254-722-955831
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