DATE: July 17, 2015 TO: FROM: RE: All Prospective Proposers Amy Kisloski Assistant Director, Technology Procurement 301-985-7707 RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum #1 dated 07/17/2015 The following amends the above-referenced RFP documents. Receipt of this addendum is to be acknowledged by completing the enclosed "Acknowledgement of Receipt of Addenda Form and including it in the Technical Proposal. Questions from Potential Proposing Firms: 1. General: Will this event be in conjunction with a live physical event or will this be an entirely virtual event? The event will be entirely virtual. 2. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., at the third bullet at page 8 of the RFP]: Purchasing gifts and UMUC merchandise [ ]Are you envisioning having a 3rd party website accessible within the event? Do you envision a website rendering in the event or opening to a new window? Gifts and merchandise will be sold by our third party vendor using their UMUC-branded web portal; however, we are open as to how this third party site integrates with the event. Please specify whether your proposed solution can render this site internally, or via links that open a new window. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 1 of 7
3. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.1 Traditional Elements., at page 8 of the RFP]: Are the bullets listed (Prelude Music, Formal Academic Procession.turning of the tassel, etc.) all just agenda items of the live event? [We re] trying to understand if this will need to [be] recreat[ed] for a virtualonly audience. For example, are we expected to recreate a tassel turning in a virtual environment? We envision recording these items using live talent, such as the prelude music and guest speakers. These pre-recorded videos would be viewed by the audience as if they are watching a live ceremony. We do not expect the vendor to recreate the tassel turning, if by recreate you mean to render it digitally using computer effects. Instead, we envision a moment in the prerecorded video where the Provost looks into the camera and says something like, graduates, on the count of three, turn your tassels to the left. One...two...three! Imagine every graduate who is participating virtually, no matter where they are, flipping their tassels in unison (if they bought a cap and tassel for the occasion, that is). That said, if you believe the tassel flip, or other traditional elements, are better served to a virtual audience by reimagining them as computer animations, avatars, or other digitized elements, please discuss in your technical proposal. 4. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.2. Personalized Elements., subparagraph 3.2.1, at page 8 of the RFP]: Please describe this request further. Are you envisioning an emoticon or digital widget that allows them to put decorations on a cap and gown? Ever seen one of those virtual makeover apps that let children use makeup, hair, lashes, a small wardrobe, and other fashion elements to dress up a representation of a person? We envision something like that...only with regalia. The graduate should be able to decorate the cap with text, color, glitter, and other creative items. Things a person would use in real life. The gown itself should only have a limited number of customization options. For example, the student should only be able to add honor cords that he or she has earned. This would require the cap decoration function to link with each graduate s authenticated profile. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 2 of 7
5. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.2. Personalized Elements., subparagraph 3.2.2, at page 8 of the RFP]: What are you envisioning here? Do you simply require names scrolling across the video screen of the names and details? We envision something like a widget that would display these details. Theoretically, this widget would have a fixed location within the viewing environment, so that these details are visible as the graduate streams the name reading video or other activities. Please advise whether your proposed solution can accommodate this functionality, or propose other solutions if you have them. 6. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements. at page 8 of the RFP]: Breakdown of approximately how many: A. Live stream webcasts & how long each stream (approximately)? We do not desire to stream any live events; everything will be pre-recorded. B. How many pre-recorded videos and approximately how long each one will be (approximately)? The total length of pre-recorded video would not exceed two (2) hours; the number and length of segments could vary based on best practices for dividing video into segments. 7. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements. at page 8 of the RFP]: Will UMUC require assistance with the creation of the pre-recorded videos? If so, how many videos and can they provide any context around the content/length of the videos (approximately)? We do not require assistance, but we invite you to propose these types of optional services. The content of these videos would primarily include the elements listed in 3.1. Traditional Elements.; these would be recorded live--potentially with a live audience. Please refer to UMUC s response to Question 6 as to the length of the videos. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 3 of 7
8. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements. at page 8 of the RFP]: Will [UMUC] require on-site assistance to capture any live streams or will they be contracting with a 3 rd party vendor? If they re using a 3 rd -party vendor, which one? As noted in UMUC s response to Question 6, we will not be capturing any live streams. 9. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements. at page 8 of the RFP]: How long, post-live commencement, will UMUC want the event to be available for on-demand viewing? We would like to provide on-demand access to the event for up to one (1) week following the scheduled virtual event. We would also like to evaluate options for retaining an archived version of the event for a longer period of time. 10. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., at the third bullet at page 8 of the RFP]: For the purchasing gifts and UMUC merchandise requirements, does UMUC expect payment processing to be done within the virtual environment? Will linking out to approved vendors suffice for shopping cart and payment processing functionality? We do not expect payment processing to occur within the virtual environment. We are open to evaluating options for integrating the purchase of merchandise into the event, including linking out to vendor websites. 11. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.2. Personalized Elements, subparagraph 3.2.1, at page 8 of the RFP]: what level of personalization is required? Please refer to UMUC s response to Question 4. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 4 of 7
12. If possible, can UMUC provide an approximate budget range for this project? Price Proposals will be requested from short-listed firms. Please refer to Section III. Procurement Phases and Evaluation Process, Article 3. Price Proposals for additional details. 13. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.2. Personalized Elements, subparagraph 3.2.2, at page 8 of the RFP]: Is it acceptable for normal graduates to also have access to the content reserved for military graduates, or does the military content have to be hidden from normal graduates? The content of event will not differ for military graduates; we envision displaying badges for military service members that could be viewed by other participants. 14. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.4. Social Media., subparagraph 3.4.4, at page 9 of the RFP]: Is moderation of social media postings a hard requirement? Yes. 15. [Section II. Scope of Work, Paragraph 3. Mandatory Requirements., 3.5. Registration Process., subparagraph 3.5.1. at page 9 of the RFP]: Does UMUC have technical/developer resources it can devote to proper implementation of SAML for SSO on their end? Yes. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 5 of 7
16. [Appendix C. Contract. Section 10. General Terms and Conditions, 10.23 Insurance., subparagraph 10.23.1, at page 46 of the RFP]: details the need for Fiduciary Bonding of Workers with access to credit card information. None of our employees have or are expected to have access to clients credit card information and all transactions are conducted via an online shopping card. Would we need such Fiduciary Bonding of Workers with access to credit card information given that none of them have or will have access? This would not be necessary, as any credit card transactions will be handled by third party vendors. 17. [Section III. Procurement Phases and Evaluation Process, Article 1. Technical Proposal Requirements. Paragraph 2. Initial Technical Criteria., 2.7. Insurance., at page 14 of the RFP]: details the need for Automobile Liability Insurance. Being based in New York city we don t own any company cars and wanted to verify that this requirement doesn t apply to us. Please confirm. This would only be necessary if your employees are driving to our campus in Maryland for this project. UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 6 of 7
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT OF ADDENDA FORM Solicitation: UMUC RFP# 91338 Virtual Commencement Services TECHNICAL PROPOSAL DUE DATE: Friday, July 24, 2015 at 2:00 PM EDT NAME OF PROPOSER: ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT OF ADDENDA The undersigned, hereby acknowledges the receipt of the following addenda: 1 dated 07/17/2015 As stated in the solicitation documents, this form is included in our Technical Proposal. Signature Name Printed Title UMUC RFP 91338 Virtual Commencement Services Addendum 1 - Page 7 of 7