According to a US judge, Amazon's appeal to challenge the US Defense Department's decision to award the €10 billion JEDI contract to Microsoft is likely to be successful. The opinion of Judge Patricia Campbell-Smith of the United States Federal Court of Claims was recently revealed after she issued an order prohibiting further work on the contract until a court challenges Amazon to be resolved in February. While Amazon claimed the contract was awarded to rival Microsoft due to US President Donald Trump's influence, Campbell-Smith's opinion did not mention Trump or respond to Amazon's allegations of undue influence. Instead, she focused on how the Pentagon evaluated Microsoft's data storage in one in six pricing scenarios. According to Campbell-Smith, Amazon is likely to "succeed on the merits of its argument that the Department of Defense incorrectly evaluated" a Microsoft pricing scenario. She believes that Amazon will be able to show that Microsoft's scenario is not "technically feasible."
JEDI contract call
In a recent statement, Microsoft spokesman Frank X. Shaw explained why he thought the company could move forward with its work on the JEDI contract, stating: "The decision was not in accordance with a single technical conclusion from the Department of Defense with regarding data storage as part of the evaluation of a sub-element of a pricing scenario. We are confident in our technology, our offer and the professional staff of the Ministry of Defense. "We believe that we will finally be able to move forward with the work. Time is of the essence because those who serve our country urgently need access to this essential modern technology.” Amazon was originally seen as the front-runner to win the contract, but the company sued in November after being awarded to Microsoft. The company says the defense minister's decision was riddled with "glaring errors" that were the result of "undue pressure from President Donald Trump. The president mocked Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on several occasions and also publicly criticized Bezos' e-commerce company and The Washington Post newspaper.Via Reuters