Monitoring and analysis services of the Italian media

The European Parliament (DG Communication) has published an open procurement for a framework contract to provide daily media monitoring and analysis of Italian print, online, radio and television media. The estimated total value is €400,000 and the maximum contract duration is up to 48 months with annual renewals. Submission is electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and the tender deadline is 20 October 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time. Award will be based on the best price-quality ratio with specified quality thresholds and a mandatory simulation exercise.

What is funded

Scope

Framework service contract for daily media monitoring (print, online, radio, TV) and periodic quantitative media analysis focused on Italy, delivered via the European Parliament’s media monitoring platform (EPMM). Outputs include daily press and audiovisual reviews, clippings (PDF or permitted hyperlinks), tagging and monthly or ad‑hoc analyses.

Estimated total value:€400,000 for up to 48 months (framework contract initial 12 months, renewable up to 4 years) ¹

Who can apply

Any natural or legal person established in an EU Member State or in a third country that has procurement access to EU contracts. Groups/consortia and subcontracting are permitted; tenderers must meet selection criteria (minimum 3 years relevant experience, team with editorial coordinator, minimum turnover €200,000 over recent years) and comply with exclusion rules.

Key practical details

1. 1Submission method: electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission).
2. 2Deadlines: main submission deadline 20 October 2026 17:00 Brussels time; public opening 21 October 2026 10:30.
3. 3Contracting authority: European Parliament, Directorate‑General for Communication (Media).
4. 4Award: open procedure, best price‑quality ratio (quality then price); qualitative stage includes a required simulation exercise.
5. 5Maximum contract duration: 48 months (initial 12 months, renewable up to 3 times).
6. 6Main CPV: 92400000 News‑agency services.

Tenderers must price unit rates inclusive of rights fees (clipping access, storage, redistribution) using the Price List template (Annex F). Performance targets and penalties are detailed in the technical specifications.

How to apply:Prepare tender in English, register an EU Login account and submit electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal; consult all procurement documents and the technical annexes (simulation, price list, interface specifications) before submitting ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Official procurement page and documentation: EU Funding & Tenders Portal.

Core facts and procurement summary

Procurement type:Open public procurement for a framework services contract issued by the European Parliament, Directorate-General for Communication (Directorate for Media). Framework contract reference EP-COMM/2026/OP/0043. Submission method: mandatory electronic submission via the EU Funding & Tenders eSubmission system (EU Login required). Estimated total procedure value: €400,000 (total maximum value for the entire framework, including renewals). Maximum framework duration: up to 48 months (initial 12 months with tacit annual renewals up to a total of 4 years). Award method: best price-quality ratio (quality + price scoring; quality threshold and price formula specified in the tender documents). Languages: procurement documents are published in English; offers may be submitted in any official EU language per the Invitation to Tender.

Deadlines and key dates:Deadline for receipt of tenders: 20 October 2026, 17:00 Europe/Brussels. Virtual public opening of tenders: 21 October 2026 10:30 Europe/Brussels. Contract notice / TED publication date: 15 September 2026. Contracting authority will not reply to questions submitted after 12 October 2026, 23:59 Europe/Brussels. Submission is electronic only via F&T Portal eSubmission F&T Tender page ¹.

What this contract covers (services required)

Purpose:award a framework contract for daily media monitoring (print national/regional press, online media, radio and TV) and monthly and ad‑hoc quantitative media analysis for Italy, delivered via the European Parliament Media Monitor/analysis platform (EPMM). Outputs required include daily national press reviews (English summaries and original language summaries, clippings/full text PDFs or hyperlinks where permitted), daily audio‑visual reviews, weekend/holiday compilations, special ad‑hoc monitoring reports, and quantitative tagging/analysis packages. Contractors must upload items and metadata to EPMM via manual upload or API interfaces specified in Annex I E (Content provider system interfaces).

Deliverables and format requirements

1. 1Daily National Press Review: before 08:00 CET on working days. Typical daily average: 30 summaries in English, 30 summaries in the original language and 30 clippings (print/online). English summaries max 800 characters (Times New Roman 12, justified); each summary accompanied by metadata.
2. 2Daily Audio‑Visual Review: before 08:30 CET. Typical daily average: 10 summaries English and 10 in original language; English summaries max 1 600 characters; broadcast time/duration metadata required.
3. 3Weekend / holiday combined review: delivered next working day before 09:00 CET; typically combined volume of two weekdays.
4. 4Special media monitoring/ad‑hoc reports: ad‑hoc packages (for events, visits, campaigns) delivered the day after the monitoring period; one‑page executive summary accompanying packages.
5. 5Quantitative media analysis / tagging: manual tagging of items in EPMM according to the codebook (tone, type, role/place of EP, quoted speakers, main topic, prominence, etc.). Deadlines for tagging typically 24 hours after end of monitoring period (explicit per request).
6. 6Clippings delivery: full text articles supplied as PDFs with OCR where rights allow (PDF characteristics specified in Annex I B) or via hyperlinks to rights‑holder platforms where permitted. All copyright fees and redistribution rights must be covered by the contractor and included in unit prices.

Eligibility, consortium and applicant types

Eligible applicants:natural and legal persons and public entities established in EU Member States and in third countries that have public procurement agreements with the EU that grant access to this contract. The tender expressly allows: sole tenderers, groups of economic operators (consortia) and subcontracting. For groups without a legal personality a leader must be nominated and registered; joint and several liability is required for group members. The procurement permits small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to participate; the tenderer must declare SME status in Annex III.

Eligible applicant types (explicit list):startup, SME, large enterprise, university/research institute (if commercially active and meeting selection criteria), nonprofit/NGO, public body, consortium/group of economic operators; subcontracting permitted; individuals (natural persons) may participate where appropriate.

Funding type and financial arrangements

This is a procurement (service contract) issued as a framework agreement. The award will lead to order forms for specific deliveries. The contract price is all‑inclusive (research, production, delivery, copyright fees) and must be quoted excluding VAT. The tender includes an Annex F Price List with unit prices to be used for price evaluation and a simulation budget calculation for a 4‑year reference value. Invoices are monthly, submitted electronically (PEPPOL or EU Funding & Tenders Portal eInvoicing). Payment terms: up to 60 calendar days following verification and acceptance (see contract Article I.4). Price revision mechanism: annual revision based on HICP (euro area) index formula from year 2 onwards as per contract.

Funding Type:Procurement / service contract (framework agreement) — not a grant, loan or equity.

Consortium requirement and partnership

A consortium is allowed but not mandatory. If bidding as a group:tenders must provide proof of legal form or cooperation agreement and declare joint and several liability; roles and qualifications of each member must be specified. The group may be asked to form a legal entity before contract signature. The tender includes Annex V (Declaration of group of economic operators) and Annex III declarations are required for each member.

Beneficiary geographic scope and eligibility

Participation is open to natural and legal persons established in EU Member States and to natural and legal persons and public entities of third countries that have specific public procurement agreements with the EU allowing access to the contract. The contract covers monitoring services for media in Italy (geographic coverage for services: Italy).

Target sectors and technical scope

Sector focus:media monitoring and media analysis, communication, media intelligence, news‑agency services, ICT interfacing (APIs for EPMM), content delivery and copyright/licensing. Technical capabilities required include keyword search tools, news database access, OCR‑capable clipping production, multilingual editorial capacity (Italian and English mandatory), and secure API/manual upload capability compatible with EPMM (specifications in Annex I E).

Project stage and expected maturity

Required maturity:operational/execution stage. Tenderers must already operate media monitoring workflows, a searchable news database, keyword search and human editorial processes, and demonstrate at least three years’ relevant experience and a proven team (editorial coordinator with minimum three years’ experience; other team members minimum one year).

Funding amount and contract value

Estimated total procedure value:€400,000 (maximum value for the framework for up to 4 years including renewals). The documented budget split in the Tender Specifications: Media monitoring activities: €300,000; Media analysis: €100,000. Tenderers must submit unit prices in Annex F (price list) and a price simulation (Annex F, Simulation budget contract).

How to apply and application type

Application type:Open call for tenders (Open procedure). Submission is electronic only (eSubmission) via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Economic operators must be registered in the Participant Register and have a PIC and EU Login account. All requested tender documentation, declarations and annexes listed in the Tender Specifications must be attached on submission (Invitation letter, Tender Specifications, Annexes I–X, draft framework contract and annexes, financial forms, declarations on honour, simulation deliverables). Questions must be submitted via the portal Questions & Answers function before the Q&A cutoff (12 October 2026).

Application method:Open procedure; electronic submission (F&T Portal eSubmission) only.

Selection and award criteria, scoring and evaluation process

The award is based on best price-quality ratio. Evaluation stages described in the technical specifications: a quality evaluation (qualitative criteria including a required simulation and methodology) followed by price scoring. Qualitative criteria and weights: 1) Quality and consistency of the proposed simulation (Annex C) — maximum 70 points; threshold 35 points. 2) Proposed methodology (production steps, tools, team composition, deadlines, licensing evidence for sources listed in Annex A) — maximum 30 points; threshold 15 points. Combined quality threshold: at least 65/100 to proceed to price scoring. Price scoring: lowest price receives 100 points; other offers scored proportionally using formula (Pm / Po) * 100 where Pm = price of lowest‑priced tender and Po = price of evaluated tender. Final ranking: quality points + price points; highest total wins.

Application stages and timelines

1. 1Stage 1 — Submission: electronic tender submission by deadline (single stage open procedure).
2. 2Stage 2 — Public opening: virtual opening (public part: verification and announcement of tenders).
3. 3Stage 3 — Evaluation: qualitative assessment (including mandatory simulation annex C), verification of supporting documents and price evaluation.
4. 4Stage 4 — Award notification and standstill period; potential suspension if challenged; signature of framework contract and subsequent order forms.

The procurement documents state documentary evidence for exclusion/selection may be requested prior to award. Tenderers should prepare Annex III (Declaration on the tenderer’s honour), Annex VII (financial data sheet), proof of turnover (minimum €200,000 yearly for last three closed financial years) and CVs of the editorial coordinator/staff (language proficiency C2 level for English and monitored language).

Success rates and competition

Success rates are not published by the contracting authority. This is a single‑lot open framework procurement for a specialised service run by the European Parliament; competition will be among specialised media monitoring providers and agencies. No predetermined number of awards is specified — the framework is concluded without re‑opening of competition; award is to the most economically advantageous tender.

Co‑funding and financial contribution requirements

No co‑funding from the contractor is required other than proposing all‑inclusive unit prices covering all service costs, including rights clearance fees, storage, redistribution and deliverables. The contractor bears simulation costs requested as part of the evaluation (simulation costs are covered by the tenderer).

Nature of support to beneficiaries

Nature of support:contracted procurement of services (monetary payments against invoices) and non‑monetary support in the form of access to the EPMM platform training and interoperability (technical integration specification in Annex I E).

Penalties, performance indicators and service levels

Contract performance metrics and penalties are specified in Annex I (Technical specifications). Key KPIs include: on‑time delivery target (90% per month) with service credits for failure (10% invoice reduction for first shortfall band and additional bands), accuracy/completeness of captured content (98% monthly) with per-item penalties (twice the unit price per missed/erroneous item), metadata accuracy target (98%), and summary quality tolerance (no more than 5 errors per calendar month; remediation within 6 hours; invoice reductions for higher error counts). Article I.10 of the model contract sets out flat‑rate penalties for late delivery (2.5% per day up to 25% of order value) and other remedies.

Templates, annexes and application forms

The procurement package includes a set of templates and annexes that must be completed and submitted with the tender. Key annexes and templates (published in the F&T Portal procurement documents) include: Invitation letter; Tender specifications; Annex I Technical Specifications (with Annexes A–F: Methodology, Example clipping, Simulation, Quantitative analysis guide, Content provider system interfaces, Price list); Annex II EP Environmental Policy; Annex III Declaration on honour (exclusion and selection); Annex IV Financial identification form (FIF); Annex V Group of economic operators information sheet; Annex VI Declaration on subcontractors; Annex VII Financial data sheet; Annex VIII Declaration on restrictive measures (Russia/Ukraine sanctions compliance); Annex IX PEPPOL and eInvoicing registration guidance; Annex X Electronic invoicing form; Draft Framework Service Contract and Model Order Form; Annex V to FWC Declaration on pre‑existing rights template. These templates define the structure of the administrative and financial submission and must be used by tenderers.

1. 1Annex I A: Methodological Aspects — mandatory metadata fields, source lists (core and non‑core), editorial rules, codebook, tagging fields.
2. 2Annex I C: Simulation — mandatory simulation deliverables and format (press and audiovisual samples, PDFs with OCR, metadata tables and costs breakdown).
3. 3Annex I D: Quantitative analysis spreadsheet — template for tagging results required for the analysis simulation.
4. 4Annex I F: Price list — unit price tables, price simulation sheets and instructions (used in price evaluation).
5. 5Annexes III–VII administrative and financial forms — Declaration on honour (exclusion), Group info, Subcontractors, Financial data sheet, Financial identification form (FIF).
6. 6Model Framework Service Contract and Model Order Form — contractual clauses, payment, IP, data protection, penalties and acceptance procedures.

Technical / IT integration and platform requirements

The contractor must be able to upload deliverables and metadata to EPMM via the Document Upload tool or the API conforming to the Content provider system interfaces specification (Annex I E). Deliveries must use supported formats (PDF with OCR for clippings where licence permits, RSS/XML metadata schema described in Annex I E). The contractor’s team members will connect via EU Login to EPMM accounts; the EP will provide EPMM training and a test environment. The contractor must provide a helpdesk (07:00–18:00 CET) and ensure fallback email delivery should EPMM be unavailable, and subsequent upload of items when EPMM resumes without extra cost.

Intellectual property and copyright handling

Summaries:ownership of summaries and deliverables produced by the contractor will be transferred to the European Parliament (exclusive rights; EP may reproduce, translate, modify, reuse, include in databases, use for AI training and share with other EU institutions). Clippings/full texts: are pre‑existing materials; contractor must obtain all necessary licences (in its own name) for the use cases required by the contract (upload to EPMM, internal distribution to a restricted list of recipients, storage for the authorised period). All fees for rights clearance, storage and redistribution must be included in the tenderer’s unit prices. If rights holders require an end‑user licence, the EP must approve terms in writing and will not accept additional payment obligations, audit obligations or incompatible clauses. The contractor must provide a list of pre‑existing rights (Annex to Model Contract / Annex V) and documentary evidence on request.

Data protection and hosting requirements

Processing of personal data for the delivery of services is governed by Regulation (EU) 2018/1725. The contractor will process on behalf of the EP personal data (recipient names and email addresses) and must comply with processor obligations (security measures, breach notification within 48 hours, assistance to the controller, deletion/return of data after the contract, subcontractor contractual flow down). Servers and processing equipment used must be located in the EEA or in third countries for which an adequacy decision exists. The contract includes a data protection notice reference and requires the contractor to submit technical and organisational measures for approval before contract start.

Compliance, exclusion and selection checks

Tenderers must submit Annex III Declaration on honour (exclusion and selection) and may be asked to provide documentary evidence within specified deadlines (typically 5 working days for exclusion evidence; 10 calendar days for selection evidence). The contracting authority will exclude tenderers meeting Financial Regulation exclusion grounds (Articles 138–143) and reserves the right to seek supplementary information and to reject subcontractors not meeting criteria. Compliance with restrictive measures related to Russia/Ukraine is mandatory and tenderers must submit Annex VIII declaration.

Key risk areas and recommendations for tenderers

1. 1Prepare the mandatory simulation (Annex I C) exactly as specified — it is part of the quality evaluation and costs are borne by the tenderer.
2. 2Ensure documented clearance for copyrighted clippings for all sources in Annex A and include licensing details in the tender (Annex I 2.E.2 disclosure table).
3. 3Be ready to provide rapid documentary evidence for exclusion/selection checks (Annex III, financial statements, turnover proof, CVs) within the short deadlines indicated in the specifications.
4. 4Test technical interoperability with EPMM in advance where an API is planned; be prepared to use the manual upload fallback.
5. 5Include all rights, storage and redistribution fees in unit prices and use the Annex F price tables; follow the simulation budget rules for price evaluation.

Mentioned countries and geographic coverage

Primary media monitoring coverage required:Italy. Eligible applicants: EU Member States and third countries that have concluded relevant procurement access agreements with the EU. Contracting authority location: Brussels, Belgium.

Success indicators / KPIs in contract

1. 1On‑time delivery: 90% on‑time delivery per month (service credits applied for shortfalls).
2. 2Accuracy and completeness of captured content: 98% relevant coverage per month (per‑item penalties for misses).
3. 3Accuracy of metadata: 98% (penalties for incorrect metadata).
4. 4Quality of written summaries: maximum 5 errors per month; corrections within 6 hours; invoice reductions beyond thresholds.

Templates and structure of application forms (applicant guidance)

Mandatory administrative forms and templates to submit with the tender:Invitation letter acceptance, Tender specifications (Annex I and sub‑annexes), Annex III Declaration on honour (exclusion & selection), Annex V group information (if consortium), Annex VI subcontractors (if used), Annex VII financial data sheet (turnover and financial statements for last three closed years), Annex IV Financial identification form (FIF) for payment setup, Annex I F Price list (unit prices), Annex I C Simulation deliverables (press & audio‑visual samples for the specified dates with metadata and PDFs), Annex D quantitative analysis tagging spreadsheet filled for the simulation, Annex VIII sanctions declaration, Model Framework Service Contract signed in case of award. Use the exact templates available for download in the procurement documents on the F&T Portal. The list of published documents includes the Invitation letter, Tender specifications, Annexes I–F, draft contract and many forms as separate downloadable files.

Submission checklist (recommended):Complete eSubmission registration (Participant Register and PIC); prepare and upload: Administrative Annexes (III, V, VI), Financial Annexes (VII, IVa/IVb FIF), Technical Offer including Annex I C simulation deliverables, Annex I A methodology and team CVs, Annex I E API/interface readiness if applicable, Annex I F Price list Excel filled, proof of turnover and financial statements for last 3 years, language proficiency evidence for editorial staff (English and Italian at least), signed declaration on restrictive measures (Annex VIII).

This summary has extracted and condensed details published in the European Parliament procurement dossier and the TED notice. Tenderers must consult the original procurement documents and the full tender dossier on the Funding & Tenders Portal before preparing and submitting a tender: the full procurement documents include all templates and the legally binding requirements for submission and performance F&T Tender page ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Official tender dossier and all procurement documents for EP-COMM/2026/OP/0043 are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: ec.europa.eu

This is a European Parliament procurement tender for a framework contract, not a grant, covering media monitoring and analysis services in Italy[11].

Opportunity summary

The contract covers daily monitoring of written press, radio, television and major online media in Italy, with outputs delivered as timely press reviews and media analysis through the European Parliament's monitoring platform[11].

The purpose is to help the European Parliament follow how EU and Parliament related topics, including the work of its President and Members, are reported in the media so that it can communicate more effectively with citizens and target audiences[11].

Contract terms and timetable

Who can apply

The notice is published as an open procedure, so the competition is available to economic operators that can meet the tender specifications and the administrative requirements set out in the procurement documents[11].

Applicants should expect a detailed submission package, including technical specifications, methodological guidance, a simulation exercise, a price list, and declarations relating to subcontractors, groups of economic operators, restrictive measures, environmental policy, financial identification and electronic invoicing.

A prepared metadata deadline appears inconsistent with the live notice:the authoritative tender deadline shown on the portal is 20 October 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time, so applicants should rely on that date¹[11].

What applicants should know

• The selected contractor is expected to provide recurring daily services rather than a one off deliverable[11].
• The award model balances quality and price equally, so methodology and operational capacity will matter as much as commercial competitiveness[11].
• The timetable leaves a limited window for questions, so clarifications should be submitted well before 12 October 2026[11].
• The documentation set is extensive, so bidders should review the invitation letter, technical specifications, annexes, draft contract and financial forms before submitting an offer.

Footnotes

1. 1The prepared metadata included an earlier timestamp of 1 January 2026, but the portal notice and tender timetable identify 20 October 2026 as the operative deadline[11].