Captioning & Transcription Services

The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) fosters innovation and competitiveness by providing high quality and timely examination of patent and trademark applications, guiding domestic and international intellectual property policy, and delivering intellectual property information and education worldwide. Completion of this mission necessitates the use of audio/visual communications tools comprised of computer-based training (CBT), web casts, video productions, multimedia presentations, Internet/Intranet sites, video broadcasts, and the like. USPTO's Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) Accessibility Program addresses the requirement to ensure that individuals with disabilities who are either USPTO employees using EIT resources, or members of the public seeking USPTO information or services, have equivalent access to these resources. Equivalent access means that the individual with the disability has access to, and use of, information and data comparable to that of a person without a disability. In general, an EIT system is accessible to people with disabilities if it can be used in a variety of ways that do not depend on a single sense or ability. For example, a system that provides output only in audio format would not be accessible to people with hearing impairments. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended in 1998 requires Federal agencies to ensure that any time the Government maintains, procures, develops, or uses EIT, that it is accessible to persons with disabilities. The enforcement provision of Section 508 (i.e., administrative complaints or civil actions) applies only when a Federal agency procures goods or services. The provisions of Section 508 cover Federal employees and members of the public that are seeking information from the Government. In support of USPTO's EIT Accessibility Program and Section 508, USPTO seeks captioning and transcription servcies as further described herein. The scope of services entails contractor support for live captioning and high quality transcription. The scope of this work also includes full synchronized text transcripts or captioning in computer-based training (CBT), requiring a full text transcript text file formatted by slide number; and video services for various virtual events, including live web casts that involve the use of Adobe Connect and its live captioning pod. The purpose of this combined synopsis/solicitation is to identify one or more small business vendors who provide the best value to USPTO to receive a Blanket Purchase Agreement for Captioning & Transcription Services. Questions must be returned no later than COB August 18, 2009. Offers are due no later than Noon, August 27, 2009.