PRESS RELEASE

USDA Service Center Agencies Go With Gateway for Common Computing Environment; Deal Estimated at $24 Million

Tuesday October 7, 8:01 am ET

Agency Procures More Than 20,000 Gateway PCs, Including Gateway 450 Wirelessly Enabled Notebooks for Agents in the Field

POWAY, Calif., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Service Center agencies may be in locations as far flung as Puerto Rico, Alaska and Ohio, but they're soon moving to a single computing vendor.

Following a competitive bid that included many of the world's major computer manufacturers, Gateway, Inc. has been selected by the USDA Service Center agencies as the sole vendor to provide more than 20,000 PCs to migrate the agencies to a common computing environment (CCE). The deal is worth an estimated $24 million.

The Service Center supports the Farm Service Agency, Rural Development Agency and Natural Resource Conservation Service. The agencies will procure more than 18,000 Gateway® E-Series desktops at more than 3,000 locations nationwide, as well as more than 4,800 Gateway 450 notebooks for Service Center agents in the field. Gateway notebooks feature Intel® Centrino(TM) mobile technology, which includes the Intel® Pentium® M processor, related chipsets and integrated wireless LAN capability. In addition to enhancing USDA employee productivity by enabling wireless Internet connections from a broad range of locations, the notebooks are thinner and lighter and feature almost twice the battery life of the USDA's previous platforms.

By selecting one vendor under its CCE initiative and upgrading aging technology, the agencies will be able to cut costs in its technical support, help-desk, installation and overall procurement activities. "We chose Gateway because the company offered the best value over the proposals we received," said Scott Snover, CCE project manager for the USDA Service Center agencies. "We knew Gateway could do an excellent job of meeting our needs and supporting its products throughout their full lifecycles."

According to the primary integrator involved in the USDA implementation, the agency also chose Gateway because of its ability to create customized solutions. "Gateway has never been a one-size-fits-all vendor," said Dennis Obial, president of Government Acquisitions, a Cincinnati and Washington, D.C.-based provider of computer/IT products and services to government agencies. "With many government agencies, such as the USDA, we work with Gateway to create highly specific solutions."

Government Acquisitions is providing primary program management, delivery logistics, delivery data verification and first-call DOA and limited warranty support for the first 30 days following delivery to support the USDA CCE initiative.

The USDA Service Center will also benefit from Gateway's Custom Integrated Solutions (CIS) group, which will provide a simplified out-of-the-box experience for the agency, including pre-imaged PCs with USDA software already built-in. CIS has a track record of serving government customers -- whether by creating Gateway Profile PCs mounted on hinge-arms for military mechanics or burning asset tags onto the covers of Gateway notebooks for law enforcement agencies.

"Gateway works closely with government organizations to understand their needs and then provide the right level of customization and service," said Jay Lambke, general manager of Gateway's institutions segment. "In fact, once the USDA Service Center approved configurations for their desktops and notebooks, Gateway built and shipped more than 20,000 systems well within the 14-day targeted timeframe -- including tracking numbers and serial numbers for asset tracking."

Gateway continues to build relationships with leading government organizations as it transforms itself from a traditional PC maker to a branded integrator of technology solutions. As a branded integrator, Gateway will launch an array of branded business products through the balance of the year -- ranging from market-leading plasma displays to high-end servers. Gateway is uniquely able to integrate these front- and back-office products into complete solutions, deliver a superior price-performance ratio, and support these solutions with high-touch, accessible service.

Gateway's government customers include many of the world's leading organizations, such as Tinker Air Force Base, Georgia State Parole and Pardons, the U.S. Defense Logistics Agency and others. For more information about Gateway government solutions, visit www.gateway.com/government.

About USDA

Formed in 1862, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an umbrella agency for nearly a dozen national agencies, including the Farm Service Agency, Food and Nutritional Service and Forest Service. In addition, the USDA is responsible for the Food Stamp, School Lunch, School Breakfast, and the WIC Programs; more than 192 million acres of national forests and rangelands; the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products; and continues to be a research leader in everything from human nutrition to new crop technologies. For more information on the USDA, visit www.usda.gov.

About Government Acquisitions, Inc.

Government Acquisitions, Inc. is a technology company focused on Federal Government customers with unique integration and customization requirements. Government Acquisitions is a small business with a strategic focus on providing the Government with the cost savings of Commercial Off-The-Shelf products (COTS) while at the same time delivering customization services. As an industry leader and one of the Top 100 GSA Schedule contract holders, we deliver expertise in the planning, implementation, management, operation, and maintenance of secure enterprise environments. Founded in 1989, with offices in Cincinnati , Ohio , and Reston , Va. , the business has a history of long-term success, growing more than 42 percent on average every year. For more information, visit www.gov-acq.com.

About Gateway

Since its founding in 1985, Gateway (NYSE: GTW - News) has been a technology and direct marketing pioneer, using its call centers, web site and network of retail stores to build direct relationships with consumers, businesses, government offices, schools and universities. Gateway is America 's second most admired computer company(1) according to Fortune magazine, and its PC products and services received more than 90 awards and honors last year. Its rapidly growing line of Gateway-branded products includes plasma-screen displays, DLP projectors, tablet PCs, and systems and networking products and services. For more information, visit www.gateway.com.

	(1)	Source: Fortune magazine, March 3, 2003 issue
	(2)	Intel and Intel Centrino are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.

Source: Gateway, Inc.

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