IBM Wins $400 Million Extension From Equifax

IBM says it will continue to provide financial-services company Equifax Inc. with a range of IT services under a five-year, $400 million contract extension signed Thursday.

Under the deal, which runs through 2013, IBM will manage and support computer systems ranging from desktops and servers to and mainframes for Equifax. IBM will also staff help-desk operations for the company.

IBM is offering the services on an on-demand basis, meaning that Equifax will pay a variable rate throughout the life of the contract, depending on its requirements at any given period. Equifax officials say the company hopes to save $20 million in IT support costs by 2006 as a result of the arrangement.

The contract is limited to IT support and services and doesn't include business-process outsourcing services. However, IBM officials are hopeful that Equifax will ultimately become a business-process outsourcing customer. "That could be a next step," says Eric Ray, VP for financial markets at IBM Global Services.

IBM was the sole bidder on the contract extension, Ray says. "They didn't offer it to anyone else."

Combined with the original contract, the deal brings the total value of IBM's relationship with Equifax to roughly $800 million.