The Navy awarded four contracts potentially worth $2.9 billion for off-the-shelf network products and services July 29, but two of the newly selected contractors immediately bowed out because only parts of their proposals were accepted.
The 10-year, indefinite-quantity contracts under the Voice, Video and Data (ViViD) program went to teams headed by Lucent Technologies Inc., GTE Government Systems Corp., Bell Atlantic Federal Integrated Systems Inc. and AT&T Corp.'s Government Markets unit. Bell Atlantic and AT&T promptly announced they were withdrawing from the procurement.
All military installations can order data networking servers, multiplexers and other products, telephone switches, wiring, voice mail systems, telephone sets, local access services and IT services through ViViD. The program is designed to modernize the communications infrastructures at Navy bases worldwide. ViViD will upgrade their links to public telephone networks and to their ships at dock.
Lucent, the company that until last year was part of AT&T, said it was the only bidder to receive a complete contract. AT&T Corp. spokeswoman Joyce E. Van Duzer said her company withdrew because "a partial award didn't make good business sense for us." Bell Atlantic Federal Systems President Barbara Connor issued a similar statement, noting that the company had been "very eager to work with the Navy."
Esther M. Scarborough, contracting officer at the Naval Information Systems Management Center, said the program would go forward with the two remaining contractors.
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