SOLICITATION NOTICE
B -- Croatia: Iskon Internet National Build-out Feasibility Study. The Grantee invites submission of qualifications and proposal data (collectively referred to as the
- Notice Date
- 3/25/2003
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- United States Trade and Development Agency, TDA, USTDA, C/O US TDA 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA, 22209-3901
- ZIP Code
- 22209-3901
- Solicitation Number
- Reference-Number-0270043B
- Archive Date
- 5/20/2003
- Point of Contact
- Evangela Kunene, Procument Data Manager, Phone 703-875-4357, Fax 703-875-4009, - Evangela Kunene, Procument Data Manager, Phone 703-875-4357, Fax 703-875-4009,
- E-Mail Address
-
ekunene@tda.gov, ekunene@tda.gov
- Description
- POC: Evangela Kunene, Data Procurement Manager, Tel: 703-875-4357, Fax: 703-875-4009, email: ekunene@tda.gov: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT CONTRACTS OFFICE: Proposal Submission Place: Mr. Damir Sabol, Managing Director, Iskon Internet, Savska cest 41/X, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia, ph: 011-385-1-6177-4444, Fax: 011-385-1-6177-012 The Grantee invites submission of qualifications and proposal data (collectively referred to as the "Proposal") from interested U.S. firms which are qualified on the basis of experience and capability to develop a feasibility study to develop a national Internet build-out campaign for Iskon Internet of Croatia. Founded in 1997, Iskon Internet, has evolved considerably over the past four years through outside financing, acquisitions, joint ventures, and rapid organic growth, particularly in the dial-up and lease line access business. The company has also diversified into the portal and content business through iskon.hr and klik.hr, and into e-commerce applications through e-tours and EON. From the outset, Iskon?s business model has been based on building a fast moving and flexible company from scratch. With its strong emphasis on customer service, Iskon has succeeded in creating a strong market presence and brand name, with initial corporate wins from dissatisfied HT customers. As Iskon has grown, it has become increasingly cost competitive through critical mass and focus on financial margins. In a recent USTDA-funded feasibility study, KPMG Constulting, Inc., conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the potential of fixed wireless technology to support last mile connectivity for Iskon. Such a solution would make Iskon less dependent upon HT and less vulnerable to cost or price shifts. The study found the technology to be viable from a cost/investment perspective, with the added advantage of bringing relief from dependence on a single local loop provider. Geographic features of the coverage area, the immediate bandwidth available to support existing customers, scalability of total bandwidth in the coverage area, and scalability of bandwidth per consumer, made the fixed wireless solution attractive from a technological perspective as well. However, at this stage, commercial services were only recommended for the city of Zagreb. Tenders for this project have recently been issued, and it is expected that several U.S. companies will submit competitive bids for the project?s implementation. Iskon recently won a citywide license to operate on the 3.5 GHz frequency in Zagreb. The company has opted for a solution with a central hub and 3 sector locations. The current topology covers approximately 80% of the Zagreb business market. For its next stage of development, Iskon Internet is seeking to capitalize on the opportunities presented by liberalization, and plans to transition itself into a full service telecommunications operator able to provide converged telecommunications products and services encompassing switched voice, voice over IP protocol, data, video, internet access, content, and value added services (including VPNs, web hosting, co-location facilities, call centers, etc.) To achieve these goals, Iskon will need to further develop its infrastructure, preferably in partnership with a company such as HEP, Croatia?s sole electricity provider, which has already deployed a fiber optic network. Iskon has constructed a 1 km link to the HEP network and is actively pursuing commercial relations with the company. A successful relationship with HEP would reduce Iskon?s required investment in network infrastructure by approximately 50% - from roughly $120 million to about $60 million. (While the current focus is on establishing a relationship with HEP, the possibility of partnering with VIPNet, Croatian Railways, ELKA, or another company(s), also exists.) The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $246,900 grant to the Grantee from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA). Iskon will contribute $50,000 towards the cost of this project in the form of in-kind and cash contributions to bring the total of this project to $296,900. A detailed Request for Proposals (RFP), which includes requirements for the Proposal, the Terms of Reference, and a background definitional mission report are available from USTDA, at 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600, Arlington, VA 22209-3901. Requests for the RFP should be faxed to the IRC, USTDA at 703-875-4009. In the fax, please include your firm?s name, contact person, address, and telephone number. Some firms have found that RFP materials sent by U.S. mail do not reach them in time for preparation of an adequate response. Firms that want USTDA to use an overnight delivery service should include the name of the delivery service and your firm's account number in the request for the RFP. Firms that want to send a courier to USTDA to retrieve the RFP should allow one hour after faxing the request to USTDA before scheduling a pick-up. Please note that no telephone requests for the RFP will be honored. Please check your internal fax verification receipt. Because of the large number of RFP requests, USTDA cannot respond to requests for fax verification. Requests for RFPs received before 4:00 PM will be mailed the same day. Requests received after 4:00 PM will be mailed the following day. Please check with your courier and/or mail room before calling USTDA. Only U.S. firms and individuals may bid on this USTDA financed activity. Interested firms, their subcontractors and employees of all participants must qualify under USTDA's nationality requirements as of the due date for submission of qualifications and proposals and, if selected to carry out the USTDA-financed activity, must continue to meet such requirements throughout the duration of the USTDA-financed activity. All goods and services to be provided by the selected firm shall have their nationality, source and origin in the U.S. or host country. The U.S. firm may use subcontractors from the host country for up to 20 percent of the USTDA grant amount. Details of USTDA's nationality requirements and mandatory contract clauses are also included in the RFP. Interested U.S. firms should submit their Proposal in English directly to the Grantee by 4:00 P.M., MONDAY, MAY 5, 2003 at the above address. Evaluation criteria for the Proposal are included in the RFP. Price will not be a factor in contractor selection, and therefore, cost proposals should NOT be submitted. The Grantee reserves the right to reject any and/or all Proposals. The Grantee also reserves the right to contract with the selected firm for subsequent work related to the project. The Grantee is not bound to pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of Proposals.
- Record
- SN00287727-W 20030327/030325213937 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |