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EBSCO Database Subscription (2026-2029)

Oxford Brookes University

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Award

06 Aug 2026 at 16:11

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

06 Aug 2026 at 09:27

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Oxford Brookes University procured subscriptions to a number of EBSCO databases for use in its university activities. The requirement covers journal content, subscription services, and education and training services. It is a database and academic information subscription requirement rather than a construction, equipment supply or general training contract. Delivery is for the United Kingdom, with the university as the public-sector buyer. The named supplier is EBSCO INTERNATIONAL INC., an international provider of the databases included in the requirement. Businesses active in academic publishing, digital library services, research information, journal distribution or institutional database subscriptions may find this buyer and requirement relevant as a market signal, although the selected package was tied to EBSCO’s proprietary products.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded through a direct award. Oxford Brookes University selected EBSCO INTERNATIONAL INC. because the database packages were described as proprietary to EBSCO, with exclusive intellectual-property and technical reasons cited. The award date was 6 August 2026. The gross awarded value is £242,128. The award covers one lot and has a contract period from 19 August 2026 to 31 July 2029. A contract signature milestone was scheduled for 19 August 2026, following a standstill period ending on 18 August 2026. The award notice names EBSCO INTERNATIONAL INC. as the supplier. The opportunity was evaluated through the direct-award route rather than an open competition, on the basis that the required database packages were available from a single proprietary supplier.

For a competitor, this award demonstrates established demand from Oxford Brookes University for multi-year academic database subscriptions combining journals, subscription access and education-related information services. A credible future supplier would need a substantial, reliable portfolio of scholarly content or research databases, the rights to provide institutional access, and the technical infrastructure to support university users across the United Kingdom. Evidence of secure authentication, dependable availability, content licensing, usage reporting, customer support and integration with library or learning systems would strengthen a competing proposition. Suppliers should also be able to explain how their content compares with proprietary database packages and demonstrate the capacity to manage a university-wide subscription at a similar level of scale. The direct-award rationale shows that exclusive rights and technical differentiation were decisive considerations.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

EBSCO Database Subscription (2026-2029)

Notice Description

Provision of a number of EBSCO databases.

Procurement Information

These packages are proprietary to EBSCO.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06dd27
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074935-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Direct award
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

22 - Printed matter and related products

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

22211000 - Journals

79980000 - Subscription services

80000000 - Education and training services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£242,128 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
6 Aug 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
6 Aug 20263 weeks ago
Contract Period
19 Aug 2026 - 31 Jul 2029 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Pending
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Oxford Brookes University
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
OXFORD
Postcode
OX3 0BP
Postcode Area
Oxford
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ14 Oxfordshire CC
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Oxford
Electoral Ward
Churchill
Westminster Constituency
Oxford East

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

EBSCO INTERNATIONAL INC.

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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