WorldCom picked for DREN contract

The Defense Information Systems Agency announced April 4 that it has awarded the much-watched Defense Research Engineering Network (DREN) contract to WorldCom Inc.

The award came following multiple delays after DISA awarded the contract last year to Global Crossing Ltd., the once high-flying telecommunications company that recently filed for bankruptcy.

DREN will provide enhanced connectivity to all Defense Department research communities, said Natasha Haubold, a WorldCom spokeswoman. The award is a follow-on contract to the DREN Intersite Services Contract (DISC) and will provide enhanced wide-area network (WAN) services to support DOD's High Performance Computing Modernization Program.

The contract is guaranteed for three years and $6 million, but if all options are exercised, it could reach $450 million over 10 years, Haubold said. She said the new features include IP multicasting and large data transfer capabilities, in addition to the previous requirements, such as stringent service-level agreements and greater availability and reliability.

"Anyone doing DOD research across the [United States], we're connecting those sites and allowing them to better collaborate on DOD initiatives," she said.

The awarding of the DREN contract would have been big news based on its potential value and services, but Global Crossing's financial woes have intensified the focus on the project.

Global Crossing Government Markets was awarded the DREN contract last year, but DISA withdrew that offer when competing vendors protested the award. DISA was then going to award DREN earlier this year, just days before Global Crossing filed for bankruptcy, but put the announcement off. DISA was set to award the contract last month, but notified vendors that it was holding off until at least April.

Global Crossing was one of the four main bidders on the DREN contract, along with WorldCom, AT&T, Sprint and Qwest Communications International Inc.