Microsoft Corporation donates nearly $2 million in software to PATH

September 24, 2007 by PATH

Digital and data transformation

Contact:
Sue-Lane Wood, 206.285.3500, suelanewood@path.org

SEATTLE, September 24, 2007—PATH announced today the generous donation of nearly USD$2 million in Microsoft Office and other productivity and systems software from Microsoft Corporation. The donation will be used to support PATH’s growth over the next three years and also gives the organization the opportunity to extend and expand its core productivity software platform.

"Microsoft and its employees have long recognized the importance of being engaged in supporting communities around the world,” said Akhtar Badshah, senior director, Microsoft Community Affairs. “We are pleased to donate the software PATH needs to accomplish its very important mission and because we know PATH to be a well-managed institution and a good steward of donors’ gifts.”

“We would like to thank Microsoft Corporation for their generous donation,” said Dr. Christopher J. Elias, president of PATH. “The network upgrades will ensure PATH has sufficient licensing for essential office productivity and team collaboration tools needed to support our mission critical enterprise network systems.”

The donation is a major contribution to the maintenance and growth of PATH’s current IT platform and will allow the organization to free up resources normally spent on essential network hardware upgrades as well as updating aging equipment. The donation consists of user licenses for Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Outlook, as well as other Microsoft collaboration software products that bring the benefits of peer-to-peer workspace sharing, instant messaging, online conferencing, new information management tools, and other features that will extend and support PATH’s existing communication technology.

Microsoft Unlimited Potential expands and accelerates Microsoft’s commitment to facilitate sustained social and economic opportunity for the more than five billion people living in every country around the world who do not today benefit from technology. A key program is the Microsoft Unlimited Potential - Community Technology Skills Program which launched in 2003 and has donated more than $255 million in cash, software, and curriculum to projects in more than 102 countries.