Renewal of Access to the Financial Times

THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE AND NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATION OR PROPOSAL. The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), Office of Acquisition Management (OAM), located in Washington, D.C., intends to negotiate on a sole-source basis and award a one-year base contract with 4 one-year priced options follow-on to FINANCIAL TIMES LIMITED (THE), Braken House, 1 Friday Street, EC4M 9BT London, United Kingdom.

This acquisition is being conducted under the authority of permitting other than full and open competition, implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302-1 “only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements”. The Department of Commerce (DOC), Commerce Research Library manages the contracts for several online databases and resources that support the work of Commerce employees.

These electronic resources allow the Department to save money by providing access to all HCHB and/or other regional offices under a single subscription, reducing the need for physical storage space for the print equivalent, and allowing users to access information at their desktops. Financial Times Limited (The) is the incumbent contractor with proprietary publication and exclusive copyright held with no authorized resellers.

The Financial Times is a valuable business-centered publication with international coverage. FT is highly utilized for its international orientation, covering Asian and BRIC/developing world markets thoroughly, as well as adequate EU coverage. The Financial Times is necessary so that the happening in global markets are known and how those inter-related systems relate to the US. Wall Street Journal and New York Times are both still very US-centric, both of what we use.

The blogs on Financial Times, such as Alphaville and Money Supply include in-depth research and analysis on topics are relevant to the government. The editorial content on NYT is usually more general, instead of business-oriented, and the blogs on WSJ report the data, but lack the depth and analysis.

This is NOT a solicitation for quotations, quotation abstracts, a request for competitive quotations; or request for competitive proposals; however, all responses received within 15 days from the date of publication of this synopsis will be considered by the Government. Responses must clearly and thoroughly defend any claims or assertions that attempt to refute the Government’s claim.

A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed action based upon responses to this notice is solely with the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Information received on this notice must eliminate the Government's concerns and address how the items can be provided without jeopardizing the on-going projects.

If no affirmative responses are received within 15 days of this notice to determine whether a qualified source is more advantageous to the Government, a contract will be issued to FINANCIAL TIMES LIMITED (THE). There is no solicitation package available. Any questions regarding this notice must be submitted in writing via email to JBrown4@doc.gov and BGabriel@doc.gov.