Ciracom gets software nod from GSA

In another sign that software-as-a-service is a growing business opportunity in the government market, Ciracom Inc. has won a spot on its General Services Administration schedule to sell Microsoft Exchange hosting services.

Ciracom, a Fairfax, Va., women-owned, 8(a) small business, won the Schedule 70 contract in partnership with USA.Net, a commercial provider of hosted e-mail services.

The companies announced the contract at the FOSE trade show in Washington. FOSE is produced by 1105 Government Information Group, publisher of Washington Technology.

The contract highlights growing demand for software-as-a-service, Ciracom said.

Ciracom's first government customer for e-mail hosting services is the Acquisition Services Directorate (formerly GovWorks), part of the Interior Department's National Business Center.

"E-mail hosting services are on the GSA schedule because we are starting to see a movement towards software-as-a-service even in the government," said Amy Rutt, president and chief executive officer of Ciracom.

USA.Net is a subsidiary of Perimeter eSecurity and offers secure e-mail hosting services such as Microsoft Exchange Hosting and Commercial Messaging Solution platforms. Services include antivirus/anti-spam, content filtering, encrypted e-mail, e-mail archiving, unified messaging and mobile messaging solutions.