Compaq wins £10m copyright alliance contract

Compaq has won a £10m contract to supply IT services to an alliance of UK copyright societies.

The Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society and the Performing Right Society (MCPS-PRS) represents copyright interests of the composers, songwriters and music publishers in the UK.

Compaq will have responsibility for managing the IT infrastructure across six UK locations, including helpdesk support for 900 staff.

Previously IT operations were controlled by the alliance's jointly-owned operations company Music Copyright Operational Services (MCOS). As part of the four-year deal MCOS staff will be absorbed into Compaq.

John Rathbone, IS director for the MCPS-PRS Alliance, said the digital rights management issues brought on by the advent of new media provide a tough challenge which has driven the need to outsource IT to Compaq.