It is natural for individual consumers to have their favorite brands. Once you find something you like, it can be uncomfortable, and sometimes even risky, to take a chance on something different. As the world’s largest consumer, the Federal Government is not immune to developing loyalty towards particular brands of the products it purchases. However, unlike the average individual consumer, the Federal Government is not generally free to purchase goods and services however it pleases. Rather, it is encumbered by rules which make loyalty to one particular brand a little more difficult to achieve.
A recent bid protest decision issued by GAO illustrates this difficulty. In Desktop Alert, Inc., the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) issued a solicitation for emergency mass notification software, products and services. In the predecessor contract, DCMA used a product known as the AtHoc Mass Notification System. The current solicitation was issued under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) procedures specifically seeking the AtHoc software, along with upgrades, training, and other related services. The solicitation restricted the competition to GSA FSS contract holders authorized as AtHoc resellers.
Keep reading this article at: http://govwin.com/bkinggcpccom_blog/no-brand-loyalty-in-government/866251
