Incredibly, GSA is asking industry for input for a follow-on EIS telecommunications contract eight years before the current vehicle is scheduled to expire.  Called the “Next Generation Network Infrastructure (NGNI)” vehicle, the agency is seeking input from industry on 38 different questions that will be used to populate a nearly 50-item matrix that GSA will use to start work on the EIS follow-on.  Industry may have to do a bit of crystal ball gazing to determine what telecommunications solutions will actually look like in 8-10 years and keep in mind that the actual implementation of any NGNI vehicle could even come somewhat later given protests, administrative delays, and customer agency foot-dragging.  They will also have to consider what the federal government market will look like, especially given the decentralized nature of hybrid workforces.  Some companies may also want to question why GSA hasn’t started with the idea of whether another large, catch-all telecommunications contract is necessary.  Federal agencies have already partially answered that question.  Bloomberg Government states that agencies have obligated $3.4 billion against EIS since its 2018 inception.  That amounts to a paltry $680,000,000 annual average, excluding any year-to-date FY’24 business.  Most of GSA’s GWAC vehicles lap EIS in terms of business – multiple times in some cases.  In addition, 90% of the business that does exist has gone to only three firms, with the top-rated contractor responsible for 44% of all revenue.  While contractors always strive to be responsive to government agencies seeking input, they may want to allocate resources here according to the returns seen so far on EIS.  The juice involved in responding to GSA’s request, or to obligate bid and proposal money to any follow-on effort, may not be worth the squeeze for most EIS primes and subcontractors.  Comments are due on the RFI March 15^th for those that do want to respond.  See the SAM link here for more:  https://sam.gov/opp/2f0f4d970acb46318297b16c1d7d63fd/view