Sprint Nextel gives up on Networx Universal

Sprint Nextel Corp. will not protest a mammoth telecom contract awarded by General Services Administration, choosing instead to set its sights on the upcoming multibillion-dollar Networx Enterprise contract scheduled to be announced next month.
“The Sprint team met with GSA on April 4 for a debrief on the Networx Universal award. After a thorough discussion, Sprint has decided to move forward and focus on the future and continue to aggressively pursue the forthcoming Networx Enterprise contract,” Sprint Nextel stated. Because Sprint Nextel had a previous contracting relationship with the government, the No. 3 mobile phone carrier was seen as being particularly well positioned for the landmark government telecom procurement.
Late last month, GSA selected AT&T Corp., Verizon Communications Inc. and Qwest Communications International Inc. for the Networx Universal contract. The value of the combined Universal and Enterprise contracts is estimated at $20 billion, but has a ceiling of $48 billion.
Networx is the third in a series of telecommunications acquisition programs GSA developed in close partnership with federal agencies. The Networx Universal contracts will run 10 years and include wireless among the mix of voice, data and video services to 135 federal agencies across 191 countries.