Top Software Industry CTOs Meeting Federal Policy-Makers to Discuss Cloud Computing Opportunities for Government

BSA convenes CTO Forum to promote innovation and lend support to federal cloud, cybersecurity initiatives

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Chief technology officers from 13 leading software and computer hardware companies are meeting with top administration officials and Members of Congress on September 20–21 to discuss how the federal government can make the best use of cloud computing solutions to cut costs and improve performance. Also on the agenda will be cybersecurity legislation.

As part of the sixth annual Business Software Alliance (BSA) CTO Forum, industry leaders will meet with administration officials such as Acting Office of Management and Budget Director Jeffery Zients, White House Cybersecurity Coordinator Howard Schmidt, US Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra, US Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra and National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Patrick Gallagher, plus US Senators Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

BSA's CTO Forum happens this year against the backdrop of a systematic drive by federal agencies to reassess their computing needs. The meetings will focus on how and when to adopt cloud computing solutions, and how government policy choices can promote innovation in software, computing platforms and IT infrastructure delivered as a service over public and private computer networks. The officials will also discuss cybersecurity legislation being considered by Congress.

In conjunction with the CTO Forum, BSA is releasing a cloud computing decision guide for federal technology officers. It is designed to serve as a tool for how to approach both the planning and implementation phases of moving operations to the cloud.

"The software industry strongly supports the federal government's move to adopt cloud computing solutions. In many cases, it can provide tremendous opportunities for agencies to boost their operations' performance and manage tight budgets," said BSA President and CEO Robert Holleyman. "By bringing the private and public sectors together on this issue, we can ensure that government seizes those opportunities in ways that promote innovation throughout the marketplace."

CTOs attending the Forum include:

• Kia Behnia, BMC
• Mark Bregman, Symantec
• Don Ferguson, CA Technologies
• Michael Fulkerson, Rosetta Stone
• Nikolay Grebennikov, Kaspersky Lab
• Tom Malloy, Adobe Systems
• Dr. David F. McQueeney, IBM
• Craig Mundie, Microsoft
• Raj Nathan, Sybase
• Dr. Phyllis A. Schneck, McAfee
• Bhupinder Singh, Bentley Systems
• Charles Snellgrove, Minitab
• Jim Stikeleather, Dell

About BSA

The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the world's foremost advocate for the software industry, working in 80 countries to expand software markets and create conditions for innovation and growth. Governments and industry partners look to BSA for thoughtful approaches to key policy and legal issues, recognizing that software plays a critical role in driving economic and social progress in all nations. BSA's member companies invest billions of dollars a year in local economies, good jobs, and next-generation solutions that will help people around the world be more productive, connected, and secure. BSA members include Adobe, Altium, Apple, Autodesk, AVEVA, AVG, Bentley Systems, CA Technologies, Cadence, Cisco Systems, CNC/Mastercam, Corel, Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation, Dell, HP, IBM, Intel, Intuit, Kaspersky Lab, McAfee, Microsoft, Minitab, PTC, Progress Software, Quark, Quest Software, Rosetta Stone, Siemens, Sybase, Symantec, Synopsys, and The MathWorks.

SOURCE Business Software Alliance