State Dept. gives Amazon $16.5M no-bid contract for Kindles
06/11, 6:40pm
Agreement provides for regular updates, content management
The United States Department of State recently announced that it had awarded a $16.5 million contract to Amazon for the provision of e-reader and tablet devices for State Department employees. The contract was awarded on a no-bid basis, meaning Amazon secured the arrangement without the Department considering other manufacturers. In a companion filing (PDF) explaining the no-bid nature of the contract, the Department noted that Amazon's Kindle was the only device that provided the functionality necessary to fulfill its needs.