Microsoft’s Azure To Receive Crucial Government Certification

There is no doubt about it, Microsoft is building out Azure to be the future of the company and to make sure they leave no stone unturned, the company is aggressively pursuing certifications for its cloud platform. From healthcare to now the US government, Azure is about to be awarded a critical certification to let it pursue more government contracts.

Announced today, Microsoft expects its P-ATO (High Impact Provisional Authority to Operate) authorization to be signed by the end of the month, which means that they will be accredited for the highest level of FedRAMP applications. Until today, the company could only compete for contracts of applications that were low or medium impact operations, but with this new certification, they can now try to win the contracts for high impact projects.

This is a big win for Microsoft as government contracts are among the most lucrative in the business in terms of revenue but also stability as well. Winning a high impact application contract can mean decades of significant revenue for the company and long-term stability for its cloud ventures.

In the announcement, Microsoft notes that other companies have or will be awarded this same certification, too. While not specifically listed, it’s likely safe to hedge that Amazon will be fighting for these same contacts as its platform is a significant competitor to Azure.

Cloud computing, while once thought of as secondary option for deploying mission critical applications, is quickly becoming a primary option for companies around the globe. With the US government now certifying cloud vendors to run its high impact operations, cloud growth should continue to accelerate.

You can read more about the certification for Azure, here.