UNM Information Technologies (IT) recently partnered with Microsoft to bring expanded software licensing New Mexico higher education organizations by creating the New Mexico Higher Education Consortium. By joining the Consortium, New Mexico higher education institutions will benefit from having one single point of service for Microsoft licensing, and have access to significantly lower licensing costs, lower software prices and discounts, and licensing support. There are neither annual dues nor membership fees to join the Consortium.

"We are very pleased to partner with Microsoft and help facilitate these software benefits to Consortium members," said Gil Gonzales, UNM chief information officer. "These schools and institutions will not only save money on software, they will also have the opportunity to network with fellow members and create working opportunities for their schools." The agreement between UNM and Microsoft also benefits UNM by not competing with existing campus software agreements, and helps gain better, and more consolidated, pricing.

UNM is the first university in the country to offer this type of service to its statewide higher education institutions. Numerous schools have joined the Consortium, among them New Mexico State University, New Mexico Highlands University, Central New Mexico Community College, Eastern New Mexico University, and many more.

To learn more about the Consortium and the software pricing discounts UNM offers, contact Libby Henry, UNM IT Software Distribution, at 277-8122 or ehenry@unm.edu. You can also visit Information Technologies for more information.

Media contact: Vanessa Baca, 277-0987; e-mail: vjbaca1@unm.edu