The Western Lacrosse Association is calling for proposals for a webcast provider for the 2017 season.

WESTERN LACROSSE ASSOCIATION

Est. 1932

Burnaby • Coquitlam • Langley • Maple Ridge • Nanaimo • New Westminster • Victoria

 

 

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Internet Video Broadcasting

 

1. Summary and Background

The Western Lacrosse Association (WLA) is accepting proposals to operate an Internet video broadcast ("webcast") of all regular and post-season WLA games. The existing webcast agreement expired at the end of the 2016 season, and the WLA has opened this process to ensure that it is delivering the correct balance between fan entertainment and value for dollar.

The WLA is an amateur league of men’s Senior A box lacrosse, sanctioned by the Canadian Lacrosse Association. It consists of seven teams based in cities throughout south-western British Columbia. Each year, the playoff teams battle for the right to compete against the Major Series Lacrosse champion for the Mann Cup held in September. The Mann Cup championship is hosted alternately between Ontario and British Columbia each year.

 

2. Proposal Guidelines

Proposals will be accepted until 5pm PST, January 30^th, 2017. All proposals must be signed by an official agent or representative of the company submitting the proposal.

All costs must be itemized to include an explanation of all fees and costs. This includes hardware costs to fill deficiencies (see Project Scope), on either a purchase, lease, or rental basis.

All proposals must be inclusive of staffing costs on a per game basis.

All costs included in proposals must include and clearly state any outsourced or contracted work. If the organization submitting a proposal must outsource or contract any work to meet the requirements. Proposals which call for outsourcing or contracting work must include a name and description of the organizations being contracted.

All proposals submitted must include the cost of providing needed equipment to New Westminster and Nanaimo, and should include recommended high definition cameras to give teams the option to upgrade. Proposals may optionally include an equipment lease option for all teams.

All contractual terms and conditions will be subject to review by the WLA Board of Governors and their agents and will include scope, budget, schedule, and other necessary items pertaining to the project. Final contract terms and conditions will be negotiated upon selection of the winning bidder for this RFP.

3. Project Scope

The scope of this project includes all production, broadcast, and staffing of the webcast, as well as the provision and recommendations for replacement of any hardware required for the broadcast.

Hiring, management, and payment of camera operators, broadcasters, and other personnel are the responsibilities of the successful bidder.

The WLA is seeking a provider to deliver a modern webcast to its fans including pre-game, in-game, between periods, post-game, inclusive of league-provided advertising or sponsorship content where appropriate.

Hardware

• Burnaby, Coquitlam, and Maple Ridge currently own one (1) standard definition camera, one (1) computer, and one (1) audio mixer.

• New Westminster does not own an audio mixer or camera. They were loaned from the previous webcast provider. They do own a computer.

• Nanaimo does not own a camera. They do own a computer and audio mixer.

• Victoria and Langley have outsourced the video production element of the webcast, and do not own any equipment. They provide a broadcast-ready feed to the webcast provider.

Game Content

In-Game: the WLA requires live video to be broadcast, following the action on the floor. The broadcast must also show a graphic overlay showing the teams playing, the current score, and current period. There should be an indication of the current time remaining in the period, and the time remaining on the shot clock.

Pre-Game: the WLA requires some “game starting soon” graphic looping to show the fan they have logged in successfully. There should be the option to show an intro video to transition from the looping graphic to the live video.

Post-Game: the WLA requires some “thank you for watching” graphic looping to indicate the end of the live broadcast. There should be the option to show an outro video to transition from the live video to the looping graphic.

Between periods: the WLA requires the ability to provide (optionally: to have produced) pre-recorded entertainment segments. Examples may include: pre-recorded interviews, historical videos, and “Intro to Lacrosse”-style videos. There should be the ability to do a live interview from the floor.

Advertising or Sponsorship Content

Additionally, the WLA requires the ability to have the whole, or parts, of the broadcast to be sponsored. This may require either on-screen graphics, or additions to the announcer’s scripts to fulfill sponsorship obligations.

4. Bidder Qualifications

Bidders should provide the following items as part of their proposal for consideration:

• Description of experience in planning and building a webcast system.

• Examples or references of other webcasts produced by your organization.

• Timeframe for completion (noting that the WLA season begins mid-May).

 

5. Proposal Evaluation Criteria

The WLA will evaluate all proposals based on the following criteria. To ensure consideration, your proposal should be complete and include all the following criteria:

• Overall proposal suitability: proposed solution must meet the scope and needs included herein, and be presented in a clear and organized manner.

• Organizational Experience: Bidders will be evaluated on their experience as it pertains to the scope of this project.

• Previous work: Bidders will be evaluated on examples of their work pertaining to webcasting.

• Value and cost: Bidders will be evaluated on the cost of their solution based on the work to be performed in accordance with the scope of this project.

 

6. Submission

Each bidder must submit one (1) digital copy of their proposal to Paul Dal Monte, WLA Commissioner, at wlacommissioner@gmail.com, by January 30^th, 2017 at 5pm PST.