{"id":665,"date":"2014-06-06T11:17:27","date_gmt":"2014-06-06T11:17:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.microsofttraining.net\/b\/?p=665"},"modified":"2023-12-31T00:09:57","modified_gmt":"2023-12-31T00:09:57","slug":"uk-government-pays-5-5m-penalty-listening-microsoft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stl-training.co.uk\/b\/uk-government-pays-5-5m-penalty-listening-microsoft\/","title":{"rendered":"UK government pays \u00a35.5m penalty for not listening to Microsoft"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"UK<\/a>
\u00a35.5m says UK government should have taken Microsoft seriously about XP<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Imagine you\u2019re at an important hospital appointment and you\u2019re kept waiting because the scanner, which potentially cost \u00a3100K, needs a re-boot. And then you discover it\u2019s driven by Windows XP which is no longer supported by Microsoft. That would be insane wouldn’t it?<\/p>\n

Sadly not. It\u2019s a true story and it\u2019s probably just the tip of the iceberg across the NHS. Just how big a problem it is we don\u2019t know because, as The Register<\/a> discovered, the Department of Health doesn’t actually know the penetration of XP amongst its million PCs spread across GP surgeries, trusts, hospitals and other organisations. An estimate from healthcare specialists EHI Intelligence back in September 2013 put the penetration of NHS PCs running XP at 85%. Its survey suggests that NHS managers were keeping their fingers crossed that either Microsoft would change its mind or some sort of deal would be done. Fortunately for them, the government was able to finalise a deal with Microsoft for its public sector users \u2013 but only for a year, only for security updates for XP, Office 2003 and Exchange 2003 and at a cost of around \u00a35.5m. As people are wont to ask in such situations, how many nurses could that have paid for?<\/p>\n

For many bodies such as the Metropolitan Police and HM Revenue and Customs, migrating away from XP will be completed by the end of the year. But it\u2019s all a bit late and reeks of panic. The government\u2019s central purchasing agency, the Crown Commercial Service, is putting on a brave face and claiming that its deal with Microsoft is saving the government \u00a320m by centralising negotiations – but why has it had to happen in the first place?<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see it as a serious case of hiding behind the sofa and hoping it will all go away,\u201d says Rich. \u201cWindows XP was born 13 years ago \u2013 that makes it venerable in technology terms. It can\u2019t last forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Microsoft has been flagging up the end of life for years and offering assistance in moving on. Yet it seems to have come as a surprise to many that\u2019s it\u2019s been true to its word. \u201cEither they thought that the sheer numbers of XP users still out there would be persuasive in getting XP\u2019s life extended or it\u2019s an example of poor management\u201d, says Rich Talbot, Trainer at Best STL. The NHS story suggests the latter. \u201cWe can\u2019t even sigh and say that this is what happens in large public bodies, because organisations in every commercial space from small to large have missed the deadline too,\u201d adds Rich.<\/p>\n

Best STL hears grumbles about the greedy face of business forcing businesses to spend money when they can least afford it. Is Microsoft being fair in withdrawing support? Let\u2019s look at its arguments.<\/p>\n