Update 2: Google Sole Source for NGA GeoViz Contract
Here’s the text of the updated notice which opens the door to others. Still as Bob Berwin points out, NGA still seems pretty stuck on Google.
- NextGov
—- update 8/24——
Bob Brewin who wrote about the sole source contract last week, provides an update from NGA: “Karen Finn, the amazingly responsive NGA public affairs chief, told me in an e-mail that the agency is going to post a revised Earth visualization notice on Wednesday that will be more “technically specific on the requirements for support and license.”
- NextGov
Fox News has interpretations of the action: ““This NGA no-bid contract is a cry for help,” said Tim Brown, an imagery analyst for globalsecurity.org, in an interview from Los Angeles. “They’re basically saying that their classified customers from all over the intelligence agencies, and from (the Department of Defense), are not able to use the clunky, older systems that are all designed very, very top-secret.”” It’s coverage also noted that “– many corporate and industry trade executives were unwilling to discuss the agency’s contract notice on the record..” because Google and Microsoft were members.
—- original post 8/23/10——-
“The United States’ National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) has announced that it intends to make Google the “sole-source” for the NGA’s Geospatial Visualization Enterprises Services project.” The contract in question is for a “secured, hosted environment that provides web-based access to geospatial visualization services and Open Geospatial Consortium complaint web service interfaces.” A Microsoft official said that it could too, but an unnamed academic was unsure. Esri was not mentioned in the story.
