USAGM Direct 3.0 Solicitation.pdf

Direct 3.0 Solicitation No. 951700-20-R-T017-10

SECTION B – SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS

B.1 General Description

The U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) seeks to replace its current affiliate’s distribution platform, usagmdirect.com (Direct).

B.2 Contract Type

Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP)

B.3 Services and Prices by Contract Line Items (CLINs)

The following sets forth the pricing in U.S. Dollars for individual line items (CLINs).

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, tax, and fees)

1 Services 30 EA

Period of Performance: TBD - TBD

Description: Setup Fee (per language service)

Reference Line: T017-20-IQ-00010 - 1

Pricing Options: Base

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 2 Services 12 MO

Description: Storage and Data Transfer Usage Charges (10 TB / 1.5 TB up and down with Support Costs)

Pricing Options: Base

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 3 Services 1750 HR

Description: Custom Integrations Developer Costs (hours)

Pricing Options: Base

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 1001 Services 5 EA

Pricing Options: Option Period 1

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 1002 Services 12 MO

Pricing Options: Option Period 1

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 1003 Services 160 HR

Pricing Options: Option Period 1

2001 Services 5 EA

Pricing Options: Option Period 2

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 2002 Services 12 MO

Pricing Options: Option Period 2

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 2003 Services 160 HR

Pricing Options: Option Period 2

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 3001 Services 5 EA

Pricing Options: Option Period 3

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 3002 Services 12 MO

Pricing Options: Option Period 3

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 3003 Services 160 HR

Pricing Options: Option Period 3

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 4001 Services 5 EA

Pricing Options: Option Period 4

4002 Services 12 MO

Pricing Options: Option Period 4

Number Supplies or Services Quantity Unit Unit Price Total (Inc. disc, 4003 Services 160 HR

Pricing Options: Option Period 4

SECTION C – DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/WORK STATEMENT

Statement of Work

The U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) seeks to replace its current affiliate’s distribution platform usagmdirect.com (Direct).

The following defined terms are used throughout this document:

● System/Platform - These terms refer to the overall technology solution proposed by the Offerors responding to this solicitation.

● Content/Assets - These terms refer to all media files ingested into the new system. This includes video files, audio files, images, and associated metadata and text files.

● Website/Direct - These terms refer to the USAGMDirect.com website. This is the public facing website external customers will use to access the tools, content and functionality provided by the system.

● Affiliate/Customer - These terms refer to external users accessing the USAGM Direct website, who are primarily associated with radio and TV stations downloading content.

Background

The United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM, or “Government”) Office of Business Development operates and maintains a content delivery Website, USAGM Direct (usagmdirect.com), to deliver USAGM programming and products to our broadcast Affiliates and digital partners around the world. USAGM Business Development helps to manage this content delivery for the Agency’s broadcast networks: Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Middle East Broadcasting Networks, and Office of Cuba Broadcasting. Primarily, USAGM radio, television and web programs get aired in-country and in-language within a global Affiliate network consisting of over 3500+ affiliate station platforms.

Business Development has five regional sales and marketing offices located in Washington DC, Czech Republic, Ghana, South Africa, and Thailand. These offices represent Latin America, Eurasia, West Africa, East & Southern Africa, and Asia, respectively.

Scope of Work

The Contractor shall demonstrate the scalability of its proposed System, citing examples of large broadcasting company clients that show experience that is relevant to the objectives presented in this document. Solution proposed by the vendor must be a Global Cloud Based Service or Platform (SaaS or PaaS) in compliance with FedRAMP/FISMA and/or similar security standards. Solutions that offer compliance with similar security standards must be willing to apply for federal security standards.

Proposed solution shall provide a credentialed, business-to-business, public facing Website localized to potentially support up to 50 USAGM languages.

System will support the ingest, accelerated transcoding and file accelerated distribution of broadcast quality media to a global Affiliate/Customer base. The successful Contractor’s solution shall include the following:

1. Content Ingest

1.1. System shall automate Content ingest from USAGM’s internal Media Asset Management (MAM) Systems and Content Management Systems (CMS).

1.1.1. The Contractor shall be granted Application Programming Interface (API) access to the following USAGM systems:

1.1.1.1. MAM systems include: Dalet, FORK, Bitcentral Oasis, Kaltura, Rivendell, ResourceSpace.

1.1.1.2. CMS systems include: Pangea (Proprietary CMS), Voltron (Drupal).

1.1.1.3. Ingest must support when possible the file accelerated handling of very large broadcast quality media files.

1.1.1.3.1. The video house standard is AVC-I 50 1080i.

1.1.1.3.2. The audio house standard is MPEG-2 at 384 kilobits/s.

1.1.2. The Contractor shall develop custom content importers for each of the above listed USAGM systems.

1.1.2.1. System Content importers shall check for newly published Content every 5 minutes.

1.1.2.2. System Content importers shall check for Asset metadata updates.

1.1.2.3. System Content importers shall assign a language category to every imported Asset.

1.1.2.4. System Content importers shall automatically import content categories when available.

1.1.3. If an internal USAGM system API is not available or is not a viable method for Content ingest from any of the above-listed systems, The Contractor shall provide alternative means for automated import.

1.1.3.1. Contractor shall provide internal network and/or cloud based ingest “hot folders” that will ingest a mezzanine video or audio file with associated metadata XML companion files.

1.1.3.1.1. The Contractor shall develop a Content importer to transform and ingest XML companion files into the System.

1.2. System shall feature basic Content management.

1.2.1. System shall provide a way to manually upload Content.

1.2.2. System shall provide a way to manually add or update metadata.

1.2.3. System shall provide a way to manually upload related transcripts.

1.2.4. System shall provide a way to manually delete Content.

1.2.5. Uploads into the System shall use file acceleration to improve the transfer rate of large mezzanine source files.

1.3. The System shall utilize cloud accelerated transcoding services.

1.3.1. Transcoding services shall support a wide range of audio/video formats and codecs.

1.3.2. By default, a maximum of 6 combined HD and SD video formats of varying aspect ratios, frame rates and bitrates shall be transcoded for every video asset.

1.3.3. Affiliates/Customers shall be able to choose other optional formats to be transcoded on-demand.

1.3.4. For on-demand transcoded files, Affiliates/Customers shall be able to choose automated delivery.

1.3.4.1. Automated delivery methods shall include: File Transfer Protocol (FTP) servers, Aspera servers, Signiant servers, Amazon S3 buckets, and Azure Blob storage.

1.3.5. By default, an audio-only file shall be transcoded for every video asset.

1.4. The System shall include a media indexing service with translation engine.

1.5. The Contractor shall use file acceleration technologies through browsers with optional desktop client software utilizing Aspera, Signiant, Amazon S3, or other proprietary file acceleration technology.

1.6. Assets shall be stored on USAGM managed Amazon Web Services and/or Microsoft Azure accounts.

1.7. Assets shall be assigned various retention or deletion policies.

1.7.1.1. General daily and weekly news Content by default shall be assigned a 30-day deletion policy upon ingest.

1.7.1.2. Evergreen Content such as documentaries or topical episodic programs shall not be deleted.

1.7.1.3. The ability to assign custom deletion policies based on Content category or genre shall be administratively accessible and set by a USAGM systems administrator.

2. Content Delivery

2.1. System shall provide push delivery of USAGM Content to Affiliates/Customers.

2.1.1. This will be managed via a credentialed public Website with content preview and download links.

2.1.2. Different versions of media files shall be supported and presented for download. This shall include versions of the same file at different resolutions as well as different HD and SD file types.

2.1.2.1. Content download and delivery links shall only be available to registered users.

2.1.2.2. Download links shall display the format type, dimension, file size and bitrate.

2.1.2.2.1. Affiliates/Customers shall be able to choose to download the original mezzanine file and/or all other available transcoded formats.

2.1.2.2.1.1. Affiliates/Customers shall have the option to download files to their desktop.

2.1.2.2.1.2. Affiliates/Customers shall have the option to download files by choosing a push delivery method.

2.1.2.2.1.3. Affiliates/Customers shall have the option to choose a custom format to be transcoded on-demand.

2.1.2.2.1.3.1. On-demand transcoded file delivery shall include options for desktop download and/or push delivery.

2.1.3. Audio only download option shall be available for videos.

2.1.4. Relevant Content information shall include publication date, last update, file type, length of audio or video, and the source.

2.1.5. File acceleration technology is required to accommodate faster download of files.

2.2. System shall provide push / point to point delivery options of USAGM Content with related Assets directly from the System to Affiliates’ systems.

2.2.1. Automated push delivery of file-based content to Affiliate/Customer shall include the following methods: File Transfer Protocol (FTP) servers, Aspera servers, Signiant servers, Amazon S3 buckets, and Azure Blob storage.

2.2.2. Affiliate/Customer shall be able to configure custom delivery method including URLs, credentials/keys and port addresses.

2.2.2.1. USAGM employees with admin access to the system shall also be able to configure custom delivery methods to assist Affiliates/Customers with their delivery settings if necessary.

2.2.3. Affiliate/Customer shall be notified by method of choice about transfer successes and failures.

2.2.3.1. If Affiliate/Customer’s custom transfer method fails, message shall include reason for failure.

2.2.3.2. Affiliate/Customer and USAGM administrators shall be able to restart and/or resume custom delivery transfers.

2.3. Affiliate distribution system transfer amounts are currently approaching 3 Terabytes per month delivering monthly on average 7,000 video files and 10,000 audio files. With improved file transfer capabilities, we are estimating monthly transfer rates to grow to 10 Terabytes per month by the end of 2022. Current user base is between 250-500 users on given day. Concurrent bandwidth usage for any given time frame is quite low.

2.4. System shall provide a publicly available, credentialed Application Programming Interface

(API).

2.4.1. The API shall be capable of producing a custom wire service feed with metadata and media file delivery capabilities that would be used for ingesting Content with metadata into newsroom systems. Newsroom systems include ENPS, OCTOPUS, and Dalet.

2.4.2. A structured API will be able to query content types across all USAGM Networks (VOA, RFE/RL, OCB, RFA, MBN) by language, language services, programs, content categories, and keywords.

2.4.3. API will minimally support http methods for GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.

2.5. The Contractor shall provide media indexing with machine translation.

2.5.1. The System shall allow users to download generated .SRT files.

2.5.2. Indexing results shall be integrated into a search function visible on the public facing

Website.

2.6. System shall provide user subscription services to notify Affiliates/Customers and internal USAGM Direct users of content status changes.

2.6.1. Content Availability Notification – System shall email and/or text Affiliates/Customers when the latest episode of a program or the latest episode of a category is available for download.

2.6.2. Additionally, system shall email and/or text Affiliates/Customers upon successful and/or failed downloads.

2.7. The System shall generate, track, and support the distribution of media RSS (MRSS) and JSON feeds.

2.7.1. These feeds will be generated by a custom “feed builder” web page where Affiliates/Customers can select the language, media type and categories of the Content they want.

2.7.2. The feed builder, upon Content categorization selections, will generate both MRSS and JSON feeds with optional embeddable content widgets for Affiliate/Customer websites.

2.7.2.1. Usage of feeds and widgets shall be tagged and tracked according to the user account from which they were created.

3. Website Usability and Marketing

3.1. The Contractor shall design Website mockups with input and sign-off from USAGM.

3.2. Websites shall minimally support the following functionality to assure sufficient usability:

3.2.1. Homepage shall serve as a portal for Affiliates/Customers to go directly to the USAGM branded Network subsites (VOA, RFE/RL, OCB, RFA, MBN).

3.2.2. Custom in-language subsites with relevant keyword localizations.

3.2.3. In-Language subsites shall have their own Network branding and vanity URLs.

3.2.4. Affiliate/Customer registration with “Click to Accept” Terms of Service.

3.2.5. Site(s) shall use categories to filter Content by content type, network, and Asset category.

3.2.6. Other Content filters shall include Day-Of, Programs, Documentaries and Archive.

3.2.7. Browser compatibility shall support the last two supported browser versions starting with the following browsers as of August 2020: Google Chrome 84, Mozilla Firefox 79, Microsoft Edge 84, Internet Explorer 11, Apple Safari 13.1, and Opera 69.

3.2.8. The Website shall be adaptive for smaller screens and mobile phone browser use. The following mobile devices shall be supported: iOS, Android

3.3. The Website shall support right to left languages.

3.4. The Website shall be Section 508 compliant.

3.5. System shall support user account preferences with the following configurable user settings:

3.5.1. Affiliates/Customers shall be able to subscribe to program notifications when the latest episode of a new program is available to be downloaded.

3.5.1.1. Email and/or text notifications shall be immediate upon new Content availability and provide link(s) to the Content.

3.5.1.2. Affiliates/Customers shall alternatively choose an automated delivery method as a means of receiving the latest episode of a program.

3.5.1.3. Within user account preferences the System shall provide the necessary fields to add server credentials so Affiliates/Customers can setup self-service delivery to their organization’s File Transfer Protocol (FTP) servers, Aspera servers, Signiant servers, Amazon S3 buckets, and/or Azure Blob storage.

3.5.1.4. User account preferences shall include secure fields for server credentials for the delivery options included in 3.5.2.1.

3.5.1.5. Once a push delivery method has been configured, Affiliates/Customers shall be granted this choice of delivery for every Asset version alongside their desktop download link choices.

3.5.1.6. Push delivery notifications will be sent to the user immediately upon success or failure via email or text.

3.5.1.7. Upon delivery failure, a system error log will be made visible as to why content failed to reach its desired destination.

3.5.2. Default preferences for content filtering that gets set upon user login.

3.5.3. Set user transcoding profile preferences.

3.6. System shall support the following Website features for the appropriate marketing of USAGM content:

3.6.1. Programs and documentaries catalogue with related sales content such as program sell sheets, images, and promotions.

3.6.2. The Contractor shall provide a way for language service editors to easily send templated, highlighted Content emails to their Affiliates/Customers. The email service will be subscription based, enabling users to opt-in or opt-out.

3.6.3. The Website shall have an area dedicated to promoting to Affiliates/ Customers additional USAGM Content, products, services, and events.

3.7. Content shall be clearly branded as being from entity Networks (VOA, RFE/RL, OCB, RFA, MBN) so the origination of all Content types is known to users.

3.8. Website content filters shall include Content type, network, language, region, country, date range, category, and duration.

3.9. Website global Content search shall be made available for all languages.

3.10. Website shall have a Content recommendation engine based on Affiliates/Customers search, browse, and download history.

3.11. Website shall use USAGM’s content delivery network (CDN), currently provided by Akamai.

4. Analytics & User Management

4.1. The System and Website shall connect to USAGM analytics systems.

4.1.1. These systems include Tealium and Adobe Analytics.

4.1.2. USAGM intends to record and track activity on the Website, and activity per registered user.

4.1.3. Any analytics solution shall track downloads by USAGM Network, Language, Language Service, Program and Category.

4.1.4. Any analytics solution shall track user registrations, user content downloads and user account expirations over any given time-period.

4.1.5. The Contractor shall provide its best solution for analytics integration.

4.2. The System shall support the following administrative functions, accessible and configurable by USAGM administrative and editorial staff:

4.2.1. Setting user roles and group permissions to configure what content a group of users will be allowed to see.

4.2.2. Digital Rights Management (DRM) features shall minimally include geo-blocking, content exclusives, and embargos.

4.2.3. Editorial controls over the placement, organization and featuring of highlighted Content.

This shall include pinning content to the top of a page, or the beginning of a playlist like for breaking news or featured content like Covid-19 updates.

4.2.4. Every user registration must be approved by USAGM Business Development personnel.

4.2.4.1. New user approval registration notifications will be assigned one of six regions according to the country of origin chosen by the user. Each region will have a unique email address where new user notifications will be sent.

4.2.4.2. New user registrations will automatically create new Leads in Salesforce CRM.

4.2.4.3. The system shall have an approval process web page accessible by assigned regional USAGM system administrators.

4.2.4.4. If a user is denied access, then a custom message shall be sent to the user as to why they were not granted access.

4.2.5. The Contractor shall provide automated emails to maintain Affiliate/Customer retention and better manage user accounts.

4.2.5.1. The System shall automatically send a welcome message email upon successful approved registration. Email will provide in-language getting started notes and links to the Contact Us and Help Page.

4.2.5.2. The System shall automatically send a “You Have Not Logged in for A While” email after 30 days and 90 days of no login status.

4.2.5.3. The System shall send an account expiration notice after 180 days of Affiliates/Customers account inactivity.

4.2.5.4. After 180 days of account inactivity, accounts will be automatically be set inactive.

4.2.5.5. The System shall provide a way for Affiliates/Customers to reactivate an existing account after it has been set to inactive.

4.3. The administrative ability to set Content previews only available to registered users for certain types of internet restricted Content. For example, many music programs do not have internet rights and should not be listened-to or previewed by non-registered, public users.

4.4. System must accommodate the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) Class Conceptual Data

Model (CCDM) and EBUCore as adopted by USAGM for metadata.

5. General Requirements and Support

5.1. System will be a global Cloud Based Service or Platform (SaaS or PaaS).

5.2. USAGM requires 99.99% System uptime outside of any necessary planned maintenance outages.

5.3. USAGM requires well established version control management and software development best practices.

5.4. The Contractor shall notify Affiliates/Customers with active accounts about System releases, updates, and maintenance.

5.5. The Contractor shall provide tiered severity level 24/7/365 Help Desk support available to USAGM support staff. The Contractor shall not be responsible for interacting directly with USAGM affiliate users.

5.5.1. Severity levels shall be as follows:

5.5.1.1. Critical: 1-hour initial response time

Critical production issue affecting all Users, including system unavailability and data integrity issues with no workaround available.

5.5.1.2. Urgent: 2-hour initial response time

Major functionality is impacted, or performance is significantly degraded. Issue is persistent and affects many Users and/or major functionality. No reasonable workaround is available. Also includes time-sensitive requests such as requests for feature activation or a data export.

5.5.1.3. High: 4 hours initial response time

System performance issue or bug affecting some but not all users. Short-term workaround is available, but not scalable.

5.5.1.4. Medium: 8 hours initial response time

Inquiry regarding a routine technical issue; information requested on application capabilities, navigation, installation, or configuration; bug affecting a small number of users. Reasonable workaround available. Resolution required as soon as reasonably practicable.

5.6. The Contractor shall create an on-line help guide in English for general usage and features of the Website.

5.7. “Frequently asked questions” (FAQ) and “Contact Us” web pages shall be localized in-language.

5.8. “Contact Us” and “Technical Support” form shall be available on the Website to help automatically direct requests to the correct USAGM office or personnel email addresses.

5.9. The Contractor shall use and make available to USAGM project managers a project and issue/ticket tracking system.

5.9.1. Clear prioritization and a timeline for System enhancements and bug fixes shall be sent and presented to USAGM stakeholders on a weekly basis.

5.9.2. Tickets will email status update changes to USAGM project managers.

5.10. The Contractor shall provide 1 hour of recorded, on-line user training in English per month.

6. Security

6.1. FISMA/FEDRAMP Federal Government Security Controls

6.1.1. All USAGM Cloud systems or services (i.e. IaaS, PaaS and/or SaaS) shall be FedRAMP Certified. For USAGM to accept a hosted Software system that isn’t Certified Fedramp compliant at the SaaS level, i.e. services that are hosted in Private Clouds or on Fedramp IaaS or PaaS clouds, the Contractor shall supply to USAGM’s Office of the CIO (OCIO) the following:

6.1.1.1. A FISMA System Security Plan (SSP) documenting their implementation of the “Moderate Level” security controls as defined in NIST 800-53 rev. 4 or later. This SSP shall include Continuous Monitoring plans, Configuration Management plans, DR/CP plans, and a Privacy Impact Assessment using the guidance defined by the FedRAMP program.

6.1.1.2. The Contractor shall provide a recent independent 3rd party Security Assessment Report (SAR) of the SSP and all plans for the system.

6.1.1.3. Once USAGM has placed the system into operation, the Contractor shall provide ongoing Cyber-Security performance measures/artifacts for their system, per USAGM’s ISCM performance plan.

6.1.1.4. The Contractor shall ensure all risks identified during the initial SAR or annual re-assessments of their system are remediated and/or have waivers granted by the OCIO within six (6) months of their discovery thru USAGM’s Plan of Action and Milestone (POA&M) process after providing options to USAGM regarding schedule and cost impacts.

6.1.2. The Contractor shall commit to support USAGM’s Authorization to Operate (ATO) process for their system.

6.1.2.1. The Contractor shall work with USAGM internal security, documenting all System government security controls currently implemented and planned for future releases.

6.1.2.2. All IT systems and/or control systems connected thru IP networks added to the Agency’s LAN/WAN need to conform with the Agency’s IT Security program policy and standards.

6.1.2.3. The Contractor shall provide all necessary IT Security documentation to support the Agency’s Information System Security Officer’s (ISSO’s) efforts to achieve an Agency FISMA Authorization to Operate (ATO) for said IT System and/or control systems. This includes the creation of or updating of a FISMA System Security Plan (SSP), Configuration Management Plan, Incident Response and Contingency Plans for the resulting system.

6.1.2.4. In addition, if vulnerabilities are discovered during the Agency’s ATO Security Assessment process and/or during ongoing Continuous Monitoring processes the Vendor shall provide support to the ISSO for their remediation within six (6) months of their discovery.

6.2. USAGM personnel user accounts shall authenticate and login through USAGM Active Directory.

6.3. The vendor shall have the ability to implement multiple role-based access controls and security groups.

6.4. The vendor shall implement multi-factor authentication.

6.5. Captcha on user registration and contact us forms.

Milestones

Q1 (FY 21)

English & Spanish Beta Sites

• Site Design HTML Mockups including Programs and Documentaries Catalogue

• Language Site Localizations

• On-Demand Content Ingest & Systems Integration / Automated Importers and Manual

Workflows

• Establish Automated Content Deletion Policies

• User Registration & Notifications, Approval Process & Management

• Salesforce New User to Lead Record Creation

• User Accounts Migration

• User Custom Profiles & Content Notifications

• Base Content Delivery Testing for Push and Pull

• File Acceleration Testing / Global Regional Benchmarking

• Base Analytics tracking User Downloads

• Security Documentation / Internal Authorization to Operate (ATO)

• Help Desk support documentation and workflow

• Email contact us & support web form

• On-line help documentation

• Complete security assessment with USAGM internal security office.

Q2 (FY 21)

• Receive Authorization to Operate (ATO) from CIO

• English & Spanish Beta Site Launches

• Start 1 hour on-line per month user training sessions

• Design Content Highlights Email Template

• Localize and Launch Indonesian, Learning English, French and Chinese

• System user surveys to be conducted by USAGM

• Right to Left Language Site Design Mockup

• Develop Right to Left Beta Site in Arabic

Q3 (FY 21)

• Arabic Beta Site Launch

• Localize and Launch Russian, Ukrainian, Georgian, Swahili, Portuguese, Serbian, Albanian

• Localize and Launch Right to Left languages Urdu, Pashto, and Dari

• Analytics Enhancements / Additional parameters

• Design mRSS / JSON User Custom Feeds Generator with Widget Embed Code Content Widgets

Html Mockup

Q4 (FY 21)

• Localize and Launch Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese, Korean, Khmer, Kyrgyz, Hausa, Somali, Amharic, Uzbek, Creole, Armenian, and Romanian.

• Develop and Deploy MRSS / JSON User Custom Feeds Generator with Widget Embed Code html

Mockup.

OPTION YEARS

• Deploy 5 additional languages per year

• 160 hours of professional services

SECTION D – PACKAGING AND MARKING

The Contractor shall ensure the Contractor name and contract number are clearly visible on all information submitted to the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or Contracting Officer (CO).

SECTION E – INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

E.1 Performance Metrics

The awarded contract will be closely monitored by the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) throughout the entire period of performance and will be reported on at minimum one time annually at the conclusion of each ordering period. The evaluation will be shared with the Contractor.

E.2 Inspection and Acceptance of Services

The COR shall make inspection and acceptance of the services/products to be provided hereunder. The USAGM has the right to inspect and approve all services/products under the contract.

If the Contractor fails to perform the required services/products at an acceptable level as determined by the COR, either from a performance or professionalism standpoint, the government reserves the right to terminate the contract.

E.3 Quality Standards

(a) All services performed and products delivered under this contract shall be of the highest quality standards, consistent with best industry practices, to assure timely provision of services, optimum USAGM customer satisfaction, and adequate protection of government assets.

(b) The Contractor shall provide and maintain an inspection system acceptable to the government covering the services performed and /products delivered under this contract. Complete records of all inspection work performed by the Contractor shall be maintained and made available to the government during contract performance and for as long afterwards as the contract requires.

(c) The government has the right to inspect and test all services/products called for by the contract, to the extent practicable at all times and places during the term of this contract. The government shall perform inspections and tests in a manner that will not unduly delay the work.

(d) If the government performs inspections or tests on the premises of the Contractor, the Contractor shall furnish, at no increase in contract price, all reasonable facilities and assistance for the safe and convenient performance of these duties.

(e) If any of the services do not conform with contract requirements, the government may require the

Contractor to perform the services again in conformity with contract requirements, at no increase in contract amount. When the defects in services cannot be corrected by re-performance, the government may-

(1) Require the Contractor to take necessary action to ensure that future performance conforms to contract requirements; and

(2) Unilaterally reduce the contract price to reflect the reduced value of the services performed.

(f) If the Contractor fails to promptly perform the services again or to take the necessary action to ensure future performance in conformity with contract requirements, the government may-

(1) By contract or otherwise, perform the services and charge to the Contractor any cost incurred by the Government that is directly related to the performance of such service; or

(2) Terminate the award for cause.

SECTION F – DELIVERIES AND PERFORMANCE

F.1 Period of Performance

The period of performance of this contract is one-year Base Period and four (4) twelve months Option Periods, as follows:

- Base Period: From [TBD] to [TBD]

- Option Period 1: From [TBD] to [TBD]

- Option Period 2: From [TBD] to [TBD]

- Option Period 3: From [TBD] to [TBD]

- Option Period 4: From [TBD] to [TBD]

Actual ordering periods will be finalized at the award date.

F.2 Place of Performance

The Contractor shall perform all services solely at the Contractor’s facility/site at the following address:

Primary Place of Performance: [TBD]

SECTION G – CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION DATA

G.1 Administrative Contracting Officer (ACO)

The Administrative Contracting Officer is:

United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) Office of Contracts 330 Independence Avenue SW Cohen Building, Room 4360 Washington, DC 20237

G.2 Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COR)

The Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) will be designated at the time of award.

G.3 Paying Office

The paying office for this contract is:

United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) Office of the Chief Financial Officer 330 Independence Avenue SW Cohen Building, Room 4360 Washington, DC 20237

G.4 USAGM 1952.232-91 Electronic Invoicing and Payment Requirements - Invoice Payment

Platform (IPP) (April 2016)

Payment requests for all new awards must be submitted electronically through the U. S. Department of the Treasury's Invoice Payment Program (IPP).

"Payment request" means any request for contract financing payment or invoice payment by the Contractor. To constitute a proper invoice, the payment request must comply with the requirements identified in FAR 32.905(b), "Payment documentation and process" and the applicable Prompt Payment clause included in this contract. The IPP website address is: https://www.ipp.gov. Under this contract, the following documents are required to be submitted as an attachment to the IPP invoice:

Invoices.

The Contractor must follow the instructions on the attached Electronic Invoicing Advisory to enroll, access and use IPP for submitting requests for payment.

If the Contractor is unable to comply with the requirement to use IPP for submitting invoices for payment, the Contractor must submit a waiver request in writing to the contracting officer.

G.5 Non-Payment for Unauthorized Work https://www.ipp.gov/

The government shall not be obligated to pay the Contractor any amount in excess of the total contract funded amount.

The Contractor shall not perform work outside the period of performance unless a modification is issued by a Contracting Officer.

An unauthorized commitment is an agreement/change in the level or quantity of services being provided, that is not binding solely because the government representative who made it lacked the authority to enter into that agreement/change on behalf of the government.

No payments will be made for unauthorized services/products or for any unauthorized changes to the work specified in Section C – Description/Specifications/Work Statement. This includes any services/products performed by the Contractor of their own volition or at the request of an individual other than a duly authorized Contracting Officer. Only a duly authorized Contracting Officer is authorized to change the specifications, terms, and/or conditions of this contract.

G.6 Role of Government Personnel and Responsibility for Contract Administration

(a) Contracting Officer (CO): The CO has the overall responsibility for administering this contract.

He/she alone, without delegation, is authorized to take actions on behalf of the government to: amend, modify, or deviate from the contract terms, conditions, requirements, specifications, details and delivery schedules; make final decisions on disputed deductions from contract payments for non-performance or unsatisfactory performance; terminate the contract for convenience or default; and issue final decisions regarding contract questions or matters under dispute. Additionally, he/she may delegate certain other responsibilities to authorized representatives.

(b) Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR): The COR is responsible for promptly notifying the Contracting Officer in writing of any noncompliance or deviation in performance or failure to make progress; knowing and understanding the terms and provisions of the contract; knowing the scope and limitations of your authority; using good judgment, skill and reasonable care in the exercise of authority; protecting privileged and sensitive procurement information. If questions arise which are not clearly answered in this contract or if disputes with the Contractor occur, prepare a written report to the Contracting Officer setting forth the problem(s) encountered. The COR will be responsible for technical direction, reviewing and approving contractor work plans, assessing contractor progress against work plans, receipt and acceptance of contract deliverables, reviewing and approving invoices. The COR is also responsible for keeping the CO informed of any issues affecting contractor’s performance under the contract. An alternate COR may be delegated the responsibility to assume the COR’s role in the COR’s absence.

SECTION H – SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

H.1 Standards of Conduct

The Contractor shall ensure that personnel assigned to this contract observe the highest standards of personal and professional conduct. The Contractor is responsible for recruiting and hiring only those personnel who can maintain the standards of conduct required under this contract. Additionally, the Contractor is responsible for maintaining satisfactory standards of employee conduct and integrity and shall be held fully accountable for the conduct of its employees and its subcontractor’s employees (if any).

H.2 Safeguarding of Information

The Contractor and its employees shall exercise the utmost discretion in regard to all matters relating to their duties and functions. They shall not communicate to any person any information known to them by reason of their performance of services under this contract which has not been made public, except in the necessary performance of their duties or upon written authorization of the Contracting Officer. All documents and records (including photographs, if any) generated during the performance of work under this contract shall be for the sole use of and become the exclusive property of the U.S. Government.

Furthermore, no article, book, pamphlet, e-mail, recording, broadcast, speech, television appearance, film or photograph concerning any aspect of work performed under this contract shall be published or disseminated through any media without the prior written authorization of the Contracting Officer. These obligations do not cease upon the expiration or termination of this contract. The Contractor shall include the substance of this provision in all contracts of employment and in all subcontracts hereunder.

H.3 Contractor Self-Identification

All Contractor personnel attending meetings, answering government telephones, and/or working in other situations where their contractor status is not obvious to third parties are required to identify themselves as such to avoid creating an impression in the minds of members of the public, of other government personnel that they are Government officials. Contractor personnel must also ensure that all documents or reports produced by them are suitably marked as contractor products or that Contractor participation is appropriately disclosed. This direction shall be adhered to unless otherwise waived, in writing, by the cognizant Contracting Officer.

At no time will any Contractor utilize letterhead for any correspondence between the Contractor and any other entity depicting or intimating that the Contractor is a member/employee of the U.S. Government, either as an individual or as a company/corporation.

SECTION I – CONTRACT CLAUSES

I.1 Contract Clauses

FAR 52.212-2(b) and (c) remain in effect.

(x) Offerors shall include a completed copy of the provision FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (MAR 2020) with their Technical Proposals. These representations and certifications will be incorporated by reference in any resultant contract. Offerors may either submit a paper copy of FAR Clause 52.212-3 or submit this information through the Beta System of Award Management (SAM) www.beta.sam.gov.

Proposals must also include the Offeror’s DUNS Number, prompt payment terms, and correct remittance address, if different from mailing address. THE OFFEROR MUST BE

REGISTERED ONLINE IN THE SAM DATABASE AND LISTED AS “ACTIVE”

PRIOR TO CONTRACT AWARD, AND PROSPECTIVE AWARDEES

ACKNOWLEDGE THE REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN AN “ACTIVE” SAM

REGISTRATION STATUS DURING PERFORMANCE AND THROUGH FINAL

PAYMENT OF ANY RESULTING CONTRACT. Accordingly, the following FAR provisions and clauses are incorporated into the solicitation and any resulting contract by http://www.beta.sam.gov/ reference: 52.204-7—System for Award Management (OCT 2018); 52.204-13—System for Award Management Maintenance (OCT 2018); FAR 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (JUL 2016); FAR 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (JUL 2016).

Pursuant to FAR 12.301(d), the FAR provisions 52.209-7 Information Regarding Responsibility Matters (OCT 2018) and 52.222-56 Certification Regarding Trafficking in Persons Compliance Plan (MAR 2015) also apply to this acquisition and are incorporated in full text to this synopsis/solicitation. Offerors must comply with the requirements of these two provisions.

(End of clause)

(xii) FAR clause 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items (MAR 2020) applies to this acquisition and is provided below:

52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Items (MAR 2020)

(a) The Contractor shall comply with the following Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clauses, which are incorporated in this contract by reference, to implement provisions of law or Executive orders applicable to acquisitions of commercial items:

(1) 52.203-19, Prohibition on Requiring Certain Internal Confidentiality Agreements or Statements (Jan 2017)

(2) 52.204-23, Prohibition on Contracting for Hardware, Software, and Services Developed or Provided by Kaspersky Lab and Other Covered Entities (Jul 2018)

(3) 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contacting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (Aug 2019)

(4) 52.209-10, Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations

(DEC 2014)

(5) 52.233-3, Protest After Award (AUG 1996) (31 U.S.C. 3553).

(6) 52.233-4, Applicable Law for Breach of Contract Claim (OCT 2004)(Public Laws 108-

77 and 108-78 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note)).

(b) The Contractor shall comply with the FAR clauses in this paragraph (b) that the

Contracting Officer has indicated as being incorporated in this contract by reference to implement provisions of law or Executive orders applicable to acquisitions of commercial items:

[Contracting Officer check as appropriate.]

X (1) 52.203-6, Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (SEP 2006), with Alternate I (Oct 1995) (41 U.S.C. 4704 and 10 U.S.C. 2402).

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X (2) 52.203-13, Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct (APR 2010) (41 U.S.C.

3509)).

__ (3) 52.203-15, Whistleblower Protections under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (JUN 2010) (Section 1553 of Pub. L. 111-5). (Applies to contracts funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.)

X (4) 52.204-10, Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards (JUL 2013) (Pub. L. 109-282) (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

__ (5) [Reserved].

X (6) 52.204-14, Service Contract Reporting Requirements (JAN 2014) (Pub. L. 111-117, section 743 of Div. C).

__ (7) 52.204-15, Service Contract Reporting Requirements for Indefinite-Delivery

Contracts (JAN 2014) (Pub. L. 111-117, section 743 of Div. C).

X (8) 52.209-6, Protecting the Government’s Interest When Subcontracting with

Contractors Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment. (AUG 2013) (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

__ (9) 52.209-9, Updates of Publicly Available Information Regarding Responsibility Matters (JUL 2013) (41 U.S.C. 2313).

__ (10) [Reserved].

__ (11)(i) 52.219-3, Notice of HUBZone Set-Aside or Sole-Source Award (NOV 2011)

(15 U.S.C. 657a).

__ (ii) Alternate I (Nov 2011) of 52.219-3.

__ (12)(i) 52.219-4, Notice of Price Evaluation Preference for HUBZone Small Business Concerns (OCT 2014) (if the offeror elects to waive the preference, it shall so indicate in its offer) (15 U.S.C. 657a).

__ (ii) Alternate I (JAN 2011) of 52.219-4.

__ (13) [Reserved] __ (14)(i) 52.219-6, Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside (NOV 2011)

(15 U.S.C. 644).

__ (ii) Alternate I (NOV 2011).

__ (iii) Alternate II (NOV 2011).

__ (15)(i) 52.219-7, Notice of Partial Small Business Set-Aside (JUN 2003) (15 U.S.C. 644).

__ (ii) Alternate I (OCT 1995) of 52.219-7.

__ (iii) Alternate II (MAR 2004) of 52.219-7.

__ (16) 52.219-8, Utilization of Small Business Concerns (OCT 2014) (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(2) and (3)).

__ (17)(i) 52.219-9, Small Business Subcontracting Plan (OCT 2014) (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(4)).

__ (ii) Alternate I (OCT 2001) of 52.219-9.

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__ (iii) Alternate II (OCT 2001) of 52.219-9.

__ (iv) Alternate III (OCT 2014) of 52.219-9.

__ (18) 52.219-13, Notice of Set-Aside of Orders (NOV 2011)(15 U.S.C. 644(r)).

__ (19) 52.219-14, Limitations on Subcontracting (NOV 2011) (15 U.S.C. 637(a)(14)).

__ (20) 52.219-16, Liquidated Damages—Subcontracting Plan (JAN 1999) (15 U.S.C.

637(d)(4)(F)(i)).

__ (21) 52.219-27, Notice of Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Set-Aside

(Nov 2011) (15 U.S.C. 657 f).

__ (22) 52.219-28, Post Award Small Business Program Representation (JUL 2013)

(15 U.S.C. 632(a)(2)).

__ (23) 52.219-29, Notice of Set-Aside for Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned

Small Business (EDWOSB) Concerns (JUL 2013) (15 U.S.C. 637(m)).

__ (24) 52.219-30, Notice of Set-Aside for Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB)

Concerns Eligible Under the WOSB Program (JUL 2013) (15 U.S.C. 637(m)).

__ (25) 52.222-3, Convict Labor (JUN 2003) (E.O. 11755).

__ (26) 52.222-19, Child Labor—Cooperation with Authorities and Remedies (JAN 2014)

(E.O. 13126).

__ (27) 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (FEB 1999).

__ (28) 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity (MAR 2007) (E.O. 11246).

__ (29) 52.222-35, Equal Opportunity for Veterans (JUL 2014)(38 U.S.C. 4212).

__ (30) 52.222-36, Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities (JUL 2014)

(29 U.S.C. 793).

__ (31) 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Veterans (JUL 2014) (38 U.S.C. 4212).

__ (32) 52.222-40, Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations

Act (Dec 2010) (E.O. 13496).

X (33)(i) 52.222-50, Combating Trafficking in Persons (JAN 2019) (22 U.S.C. chapter 78 and E.O. 13627).

__ (ii) Alternate I (MAR 2015) of 52.222-50 (22 U.S.C. chapter 78 and E.O. 13627).

__ (34) 52.222-54, Employment Eligibility Verification (AUG 2013). (Executive Order 12989). (Not applicable to the acquisition of commercially available off-the-shelf items or certain other types of commercial items as prescribed in 22.1803.)

__ (35)(i) 52.223-9, Estimate of Percentage of Recovered Material Content for EPA– Designated Items (MAY 2008) (42 U.S.C. 6962(c)(3)(A)(ii)). (Not applicable to the acquisition of commercially available off-the-shelf items.)

__ (ii) Alternate I (MAY 2008) of 52.223-9 (42 U.S.C. 6962(i)(2)(C)). (Not applicable to the acquisition of commercially available off-the-shelf items.)

__ (36)(i) 52.223-13, Acquisition of EPEAT®-Registered Imaging Equipment (JUN 2014) (E.O.s 13423 and 13514).

__ (ii) Alternate I (JUN 2014) of 52.223-13.

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