WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Internet2, an advanced technology community founded by the nation's leading higher education institutions, today announced a new cloud service program for its members that will enable Internet2’s 221 member universities and additional education institutions through Internet2’s NET+ Regional and Global Partners program to take advantage of all Amazon Web Services (AWS), through a third-party reseller.
The University of Virginia, the sponsoring institution, and the University of Chicago, Cornell University, the University of Iowa and the University of Wisconsin are working with AWS and Internet2 to define and tailor the new service as an Internet2 NET+ offering, which is expected to be open to other institutions in May 2013.
“The importance of cloud computing to the future of IT in education cannot be underestimated,” said Michael R. McPherson, University of Virginia associate vice president and deputy chief information officer. “From on-demand capacity for mission-critical systems such as registration and learning management, to cost-effective provisioning of high-throughput computing, to data mining and databases, cloud resources are an inevitable component of our future computing environments. AWS is a critical player in the cloud landscape, so we are delighted to be able to work with AWS, Internet2, and our service validation partners to bring this important suite of services to the Internet2 community. Internet2 NET+ is a great example of how we can all move more quickly toward our goals by working together.”
This new Internet2 NET+ AWS program will provide a community-friendly, self-service portal created and managed by AWS solution provider, DLT Solutions; discounts on eligible AWS services; and expanded payment options that include invoicing and grant-friendly, pre-payment services, as well as traditional credit card payment services. The new offering will allow universities to aggregate individual and institutional usage of AWS to achieve cost savings and improved performance and functionality. This innovative program also addresses data transfer costs. DLT Solutions also will provide options for end-user and enterprise support services.
"AWS' ease of use, scale, and value proposition combined with the incredible performance and capacity of the Internet2 Research and Education network and Internet2's InCommon federated identity capabilities will allow individuals on participating campuses to quickly and easily gain access to the power and capacity of this popular cloud computing platform," said Shelton Waggener, Internet2 senior vice president.
"As a company focused on serving the U.S. Public Sector, DLT Solutions is excited about this opportunity to provide a unique, national purchasing program making it easy for Internet2's research and education community to take advantage of the many benefits of cloud computing,” said Brian Strosser, senior vice president corporate sales and strategy of DLT Solutions. “Our partnership with Amazon Web Services offers our customers the most robust and cost-effective, infrastructure-as-a-service platform in the industry."
Institutions interested in this new Internet2 NET+ AWS program should email netplus@internet2.edu or visit www.internet2.edu/netplus.
About Internet2 • www.internet2.edu
Internet2® is a member-owned advanced technology community founded by the nation's leading higher education institutions in 1996. Internet2 provides a collaborative environment for U.S. research and education organizations to solve common technology challenges, and to develop innovative solutions in support of their educational, research, and community service missions.
Internet2 consists of 220 U.S. universities, 60 leading corporations, 70 government agencies, 38 regional and state education networks and more than 100 national research and education networking partners representing more than 50 countries. Internet2 offices are located in Ann Arbor, Mich.; Emeryville, Calif.; and Washington, DC.
About DLT Solutions
For more than twenty years, DLT Solutions has been the IT software and solutions provider of choice for federal, state, local government and education customers. By hand selecting its manufacturer partners including Amazon Web Services, Autodesk, Google, NetApp, Oracle, Quest Software, Red Hat,Solarwinds and Symantec, DLT fulfills its mission to be a value-added reseller of only the best software and hardware products and services, as well as a premier provider of technical support, through its many government contracts. The company specializes in carefully-selected solution areas — Cloud Computing, Data Center Consolidation, Geospatial Data Systems and Computer-Aided Design for Transportation, Utilities and Manufacturing.