Red Hat to appeal Swiss Microsoft decision

Open source services vendor Red Hat is to appeal a Swiss government agency's decision to plump for using Microsoft products, without seeming to consider any others.

The Swiss Federal Bureau for Building and Logistics awarded Microsoft a three-year desktop licence and maintenance contract, worth 14 million Swiss Francs per year, without putting the contract out to tender.

The Swiss line was that there were no viable alternative suppliers, according to Red Hat. "Au contraire," said the Red Hat legal team, pointing out that Swiss organisations already using Red Hat products include the Federal Agency for Computer Sciences and and Telecommunictions (BIT) and the Federal Institute for Intellectual Property (IGE).