NASA Chooses Hewlett-Packard for $5.6 Billion Contract

Hewlett-Packard said it won a seven-year contract from NASA to provide U.S. government agencies with as much as $5.6 billion of server computers, printers and other equipment.

The deal with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration allows all U.S. federal government agencies and some contractors to purchase technology from HP over the life of the contract. It covers desktops, workstations, server computers used by businesses and agencies and printers, among other gear.

The contract guarantees prices at or below those set by the U.S. General Services Administration and the lowest surcharge, capped at $18,000 for orders of more than $3 million, HP said.

Separately, market researcher IDC reported on Wednesday that HP kept its top ranking in sales of server computers in the first quarter, with 29.2% of the worldwide market as measured by revenue, up from 28.2% a year earlier.

Market researcher Gartner Inc., in a similar survey released on Tuesday, also ranked HP No. 1 in server unit sales in the first quarter.

International Business Machines came in at a statistical tie with HP, according to IDC, with 28.9% of the market.