NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD SOLE SOURCE CONTRACTS

THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS or a solicitation or request for offers. This is a notice of intent to award sole source contracts under the statutory authority of 10 USC 2304(c)(1), set forth in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-1, Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

The United States Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) intends to negotiate on a sole-source basis with The Associated Press, Agence France Presse, and Reuters for News Wire Services, the largest and most comprehensive global news services of which the agency knows to support its own reporting and fact checking. The services of these providers are necessary to satisfy the news wire service needs of the five networks that the BBG oversees: The Voice of America (VOA), Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio Free Asia (RA), and Middle East Broadcasting Network (MBN).

The BBG networks are trusted news sources and are the leading channels for information about the United States as well as independent platforms for freedom of expression and freedom of press. The BBG networks provide high-quality journalism and programming to an unduplicated audience across all media of more than 278 million people around the world each week. The networks' estimated unduplicated audience consists of 174 million people on television, 130 million on radio, and 45 million on internet.

To satisfy its news broadcasting and its other journalistic needs, the BBG has determined that it requires news wire services from three largest and most comprehensive, globally trusted and highly-regarded news wire service providers (for text, video, photos/graphics and archived content) that comport to the highest journalistic standards and possess the capability, capacity, depth and breadth necessary to support the magnitude of the agency's audience size and needs.

The BBG intends to consolidate its current news wire service contracts to reduce duplication of costs and efforts by procuring all of its news wire service needs for the five networks, for the next five years, by conducting a single procurement to award one contract to each news wire service provider identified in this notice. Each contract that the BBG awards for this requirement will support the five networks under the BBG umbrella.

A determination not to compete the proposed contract action based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. All responsible sources may submit a capability statement, which will be considered by the agency; however, any response to this notice must show clear and convincing evidence that competition would be advantageous to the Government.

Interested parties desiring to submit a capability statement may submit one by e-mail to Fermaint Rios at [email protected] not later than 12:00 PM (EST), Friday, September 8, 2017. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted.

Bid Protests Not Available