E-book and Digital Audiobook Platform

Seeking a provider for an e-book and digital audiobook platform to improve educational resource access and digital literacy in Tennessee.

Offerors must provide Unit Prices for ALL Item Numbers listed in Exhibit A.
Offerors must provide information describing the proposed Escalation/De-Escalation process.
Unit Prices shall remain firm for the first year of the contract term.
The proposed solution must be Cloud Based Hosting.
The platform must authenticate via EZProxy.
The platform and content should be engaging and geared for pre-K-12 students.
The solution must provide accessibility features compliant with Section 508.
The solution must provide age-appropriate, high-quality content from a wide variety of publishers across numerous genres.
The solution must provide the ability to limit or restrict access to e-book and audiobook for specific groups or grades.
Titles must be available in multiple languages, with English and Spanish required, and Arabic, Kurdish, Swahili preferred.
The solution must provide the ability to access public library e-book and digital audiobooks.
Content must integrate with Aspen Discovery layer or provide MARC records for side-loading into Aspen.
Content should be accessible and deliverable to students and staff through the public library's shared system.
The platform must provide opportunities for online engagement and read aloud.
The system must operate on hardware with minimum standards for Laptops/Desktops (Quad-Core 2.5GHz processor, 8GB RAM, 128GB SATA Hard drive, 1GB wired ethernet and/or 802.11x with 802.1x authentication, video card support for 1920x1080 resolutions, USB/USB-C based headset, USB 3.0 BUS, LCD display capable of 1920x1080 resolution).
The operating system must meet minimum standards for Windows PC (Windows 10 (22H2), current C2R version of MS Office Suite, Microsoft Edge Browser (oldest supported version), .NET 3.5 Service Pack 1, .NET 6 LTS or .NET 7).
The operating system must meet minimum standards for Apple MAC (Mac OS version 10.15 Minimum, current C2R version of MS Office, web browser updated to latest version).
The proposed solution must support operation using both a 1 GB wire-based connection and an 802.11x wireless connection.
The system must operate normally on an existing wide area network infrastructure with a minimum of 100 Mb metro-fiber and a shared internet egress capacity of 30 Gb.
If on-premises, server configurations must have redundant network connections to diverse switches within MNPS data center(s) to support SAN connectivity.
If on-premises, the system must utilize Microsoft Operating System (server version 2019) and Microsoft SQL Database (2019) as a minimum platform.
If on-premises, the offeror must confirm the proposed solution will provide an expected hardware architecture, including servers (specifications and counts), all associated licenses, and expected storage capacity for a minimum of one full year.
If on-premises and load balancing is required, the firm must utilize an F5 load-balancer.
Offerors must clearly identify product support options, including availability hours, days, holidays, and tier structure.
If the solution is Vendor Hosted/Managed, the offeror must describe the type of data sent, data elements, data transmission method, security mechanisms (SSL, VPN), secure data storage, tenant segregation, database encryption details, emergency access procedures, data integrity mechanisms, secure backup, data archival security, and data destruction procedures.
Offerors must provide their most recent SOC2 report.
Offerors must state their contracted SLA for reporting security breaches/incidents.
Offerors must describe their organization's vulnerability management program.
Offerors must encrypt all data transmissions, including server-to-server within data centers.
If sensitive data is stored/transmitted, offerors must describe the encryption key architecture used.
Offerors must list any required third-party software and minimum version levels.
Offerors must describe authentication methods used for anonymous/non-MNPS Users.
The solution must allow for M365 integration for MNPS user authentication.
Offerors must describe their system's role-based access controls.
The solution must allow granting/revoking rights based on M365/AD groups.
User activity audit trails must be retained to enable privacy audits.
Offerors must confirm if the solution has undergone a security assessment by an independent 3rd party and provide executive summaries.
Offerors must state the Return Time Objectives (RTO) and Recovery Point Objectives (RPO) for the solution.
Offerors must provide their Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP).
Offerors must state the maximum number of concurrent and licensed users the system will support.
Offerors must state their policies regarding the sharing of data with third parties or subprocessors.
Offerors must describe how AI is integrated into the solution, how it ensures compliance with data privacy regulations (GDPR, COPPA, CCPA, FERPA), measures to protect personal and sensitive information, data ownership and usage, how student data is not used for non-educational purposes, ability to train on proprietary data and its security, transparency measures for AI model's decision-making and training data, measures to prevent biases or harmful content, and how MNPS will be informed of changes to the AI model.
Contractor must maintain Commercial General Liability Insurance of $1,000,000.
Contractor must maintain Automobile Liability Insurance of $1,000,000 (if coming on-site or making deliveries).
Contractor must maintain Professional Liability Insurance of $1,000,000.
Contractor must maintain Sexual Abuse and Molestation Insurance of $1,000,000.
Contractor must maintain Cyber/Privacy Insurance of $1,000,000 (for less than 25 schools) or $2,000,000 (for 25 or more schools).
Contractor must maintain Builder’s Risk Insurance on a replacement cost basis during construction (if applicable).
Contractor must maintain Technical Errors and Omissions Coverage of $1,000,000.
Contractor must maintain Worker’s Compensation Insurance with statutory limits and Employer's Liability Insurance of $100,000 (if applicable).
Contractor must comply with Public Chapter 587 of 2007 regarding criminal background checks for employees.
Offeror must certify independent price determination.
Offeror must certify they are not presently debarred, suspended, or proposed for debarment.
Offeror must certify compliance with all applicable laws.
Offeror must certify they are current on all applicable licenses and taxes.
Offeror must certify non-discrimination in employment practices.
Offeror must certify that neither the prime, subcontractors, sub-consultants, nor providers of day laborers employ any person who is not a legal resident of the United States.
Offeror must certify no contingent fees have been paid or offered.
Offeror must certify compliance with the Iran Divestment Act.
Offeror must certify they are not currently engaged in and will not engage in a boycott of Israel.
Offeror must acknowledge and accept the final version of the solicitation, including any amendments.
Proposals must be attached as a single PDF document.
Cost criterion must be attached as a separate Excel document.
MNPS Technology Questionnaire must be attached as a separate Excel document.
Exceptions to the MNPS Standard Contract Terms must be attached as a separate Word document with Track Changes.
A Title Page must be included with RFQ Number, RFQ Title, Proposer's Company Name, and Proposer's Point of Contact.
A Table of Contents must be included.
The content of each evaluation criterion must address the requested information in the same order.

$500,000 – $2,000,000

Open Date: March 23rd, 2026

Question Deadline: March 31st, 2026 at 2:00 PM CST

Close Date: April 7th, 2026 at 2:00 PM CST

Award Date: TBD

Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools

Organization overview and procurement intelligence available on paid plans.

The selected vendor will provide an e-book and digital audiobook platform designed to enhance access to educational resources and foster digital literacy. The project will support the development of a vibrant learning community by incorporating interactive features and personalized content tailored to diverse user needs.

Through the use of advanced technologies, the platform aims to transform traditional reading experiences into immersive and interactive learning environments. The goal is to facilitate effective learning and community engagement for a broad audience, leveraging digital media and innovative educational tools.

E-book and Digital Audiobook Platform

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