Sole-Source Justification for My Talking Books (RealSAM) Dialog Licenses

The Library of Congress seeks RealSAM Dialog licenses and technical support services for its My Talking Books Amazon Alexa smart speaker application serving blind and print-disabled patrons, with proposals due September 30 at 5:00 PM ET. This is a sole-source procurement closed to competition, with a signed Justification and Authorization previously posted.

Place of performance is Washington, DC 20540. The procurement is structured as an Indefinite-Delivery, Indefinite-Quantity contract covering new perpetual RealSAM Dialog licenses sold in blocks of 500 at firm-fixed prices and annual technical support for both new and legacy licenses. The contract period runs December 1, 2026 through November 30, 2031, divided into five one-year ordering periods. The minimum order value is $10,000, with a maximum aggregate ceiling of $3,000,000 across the entire contract term.

Four mutually exclusive hosting scenarios are offered (Scenarios A through D), with varying Library-hosted infrastructure responsibilities ranging from contractor-hosted components except Library authentication and catalog services, to full Library hosting. All scenarios carry equal pricing. The contractor must deliver technical support resolving issues within 72 business hours, maintain 98.6% monthly Service Level Agreement compliance, provide bi-weekly license status reports, conduct monthly status meetings, and hold a post-award kick-off meeting within 10 business days of award. FedRAMP certification is preferred but not mandatory; contractors may support the Library's security authorization process as an alternative.

Key personnel required include a Project Manager with at least four years' experience managing similar projects and a Technical Support Lead with a Bachelor's degree and four years leading technical support for complex products. The contractor retains copyright ownership of the RealDialog Engine software but grants the Government a royalty-free, nonexclusive, irrevocable license for up to 5,000 users. The Library retains ownership of all data and deliverables.

Evaluation uses Low Price, Technically Acceptable methodology. Proposals must include three volumes: Volume 1 addressing technical approach and licensing terms (maximum 10 pages, excluding resumes and pricing), Volume 2 presenting licensing terms separately, and pricing via Attachment J3 covering all four scenarios. Amendment 0002, effective September 24, provided offeror Q&A answers and updated RealSAM components specification (version 2).