AstraZeneca to inject $1.7bn into IBM

IBM has landed a $1.7bn outsourcing deal to provide UK pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca with a comprehensive IT infrastructure.

AstraZeneca will retain control of its IT strategy and the development and support of its application systems. IBM will provide a range of IT services, including PC, network and communications services and computer operations support. The global agreement will run for seven years and will see up to 1,200 AstraZeneca employees in 45 countries, mainly from Sweden, the US and the UK, transfer to IBM. No redundancies are anticipated. Frank Kern, general manager of IBM Global Services, said in a statement: "Our combined strengths, global reach and culture will enable AstraZeneca to optimise its global IT infrastructure and create business value." IBM has now completed around 500 outsourcing deals since the early 1990s. 120 of these have been worth in excess of $100m.