AT&T gets another extension on long-standing videoconferencing contract

The Defense Information Systems Agency earlier this week announced plans to extend its long-standing videoconferencing agreement with AT&T, because AT&T is the only company capable of providing the service.

DISA originally awarded AT&T the Defense Information Systems Network Video Services-Global contract in 1997 with a ceiling price of $125 million and an eight-year life span. But since AT&T owns all the hardware and proprietary software the system runs on, the agency has extended the agreement on a sole-source basis since its original 2005 expiration date.

The initial agreement called for AT&T to install videoconferencing hubs in California, Georgia and Maryland to support both classified and unclassified sessions. Today, according to DISA, AT&T provides dial-up, Internet protocol-based and dedicated links for point-to-point and multipoint videoconferencing.

DISA declined to disclose the value of the three-year extension until it is official around the end of November. This May, the agency increased the ceiling value of the contract by $5.6 million, from $239.3 million to $244.9 million.