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The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), National Agricultural

Library (NAL), has a requirement for electronic access via IP authentication for all USDA users and public on-site

users to selected electronic journals, journal backfiles, ebooks and other resources published by Springer Nature.

THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY AND A SOLICITATION IS NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE. This

notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or an obligation on

the part of the Government. The information collected will be used for market research to define the government's

requirements and create the appropriate acquisition strategy. Responding to this notice does not automatically

include the responder on any bidders list, if such a list is developed. Depending on the quantity and quality of the

responses received, the criteria may serve to generate the initial pool of potential contractors to be invited to

respond to a resulting solicitation.

NAL requires electronic access via the Internet to selected Springer electronic journals, backfiles, ebooks and

other publications for use by all USDA employees, contractors, authorized public on-site users, cooperators and

volunteers working on behalf of USDA and acting within the scope of their relationship with USDA.

All USDA locations worldwide are to be considered authorized premises. USDA employees and contractors,

cooperators and volunteers working on behalf of USDA and acting within the scope of their relationship with

USDA, as well as employees, contractors, cooperators and volunteers working on behalf of other federal agencies

that are authorized by the publisher to use NAL's DigiTop service, are considered authorized users of the journals.

In addition to internal use, authorized users have the right to use content of the journals for ordinary business,

scholarly and educational purposes of USDA, including but not limited to viewing, printing, saving, reusing and

disseminating content.

The contractor shall make the Springer Nature publications accessible 24 hours per day. Authorized users shall be

granted access to the Springer nature journals through the IP authentication without any impediments.

The contractor shall provide access to the Springer Nature publications in accordance with the following terms and

conditions:

a. The authorized users shall have the right to use content during the term of

the subscription. Subscriptions begin on July 1 and run through June 30 of the following year.

b. The contractor shall grant post-cancellation access and perpetual data rights to the subscribed-to content upon

subscription to the full volume year for each title. When the July 1 renewal is processed, perpetual access rights

will convey for all titles for which access was previously purchased.

i. If the full volume year of any given title is not purchased by USDA, that title will have no perpetual access rights.

ii. For any title not selected for renewal, USDA retains the option to purchase the remainder of the volume year by

paying the remaining balance due for the normal 12-month subscription. Perpetual access rights will be conveyed

for these titles.

iii. If a title is no longer available from Springer Nature for the next full year, USDA will have the option to purchase

the remainder of that title's volume year, so that perpetual access is acquired.

c. Upon request by NAL the contractor shall provide the subscribed-to or

purchased content in the mutually agreed-upon electronic medium and format.

d. The right to perpetual use of the subscribed-to journal content will survive

the termination of the contract for any reason.

The contractor shall provide access to the subscribed content and the administrative interface without imposing on

the subscriber's users any additional terms and conditions or similar restrictions that are not part of the contract. If

the contractor's system's technical functionality prevents suppression of such terms and conditions or similar

restrictions, the contractor agrees that any language, however construed and presented, is null and void and not

binding on the subscriber's users.

All vendors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) database as required by FAR 4.1102

to be considered for any awards. See FAR 52.204-7 for registration instructions. It is the vendor's responsibility to

monitor FBO for any amendments.

Any interested vendor that feels able to fulfill the requirement shall submit supporting documentation via email to

Christopher Tomlin at the following e-mail address: christopher.tomlin@usda.gov. No information will be taken by

telephone. In responding to this notice, please provide your company name, address, email address, phone/fax

number, and DUNS number.

Please see Attachment 1 - Statement of Work