Service to Manage Media Contacts and Distribute Press Releases

The European Commission Representation in Dublin intends to procure a specialised service provider to compile, maintain and manage an up-to-date database of journalists and media production staff in Ireland and to support targeted distribution of press releases and event/briefing invitations. The procedure is a planned negotiated low or middle value procurement (procedure reference EC-COMM/DUB/2026/LVP/0608-EXA) with an estimated total contract value of €35,000 and a maximum duration of 48 months. Expressions of interest are scheduled to open on 8 October 2026 and close on 23 October 2026 at 22:59 Europe/Dublin, with electronic submission via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal using an EU Login account. This notice is an advance publication of intent and not a call for tenders; full specifications, award criteria and contractual terms will be published when the negotiated procedure is launched.

What it funds

Summary

Contract for an external provider to compile, maintain and manage an up-to-date database of journalists and media production staff in Ireland and to support targeted distribution of press releases and event/briefing invitations. The contract covers ongoing database maintenance to ensure correct audience targeting and optimise impact.

This publication announces the contracting authority's intent to launch a future negotiated procedure; it is not yet a call for tenders. Interested suppliers must have an EU Login account to submit expressions of interest. Official notice and documents available on the portal Tender details.

Footnotes

1. 1Planned dates and values taken from the EU Funding & Tenders Portal notice for procedure EC-COMM/DUB/2026/LVP/0608-EXA (publication 03/10/2024).

Summary of the Opportunity

What the contracting authority wants

The Representation of the European Commission in Dublin seeks to outsource the compilation and ongoing management of an up-to-date database of media contacts in Ireland. The contractor will deliver a maintained list (database) of journalists and media production staff classified by relevant categories so that the Representation Press team can accurately select recipients for press releases, event invitations and briefings to maximise impact and take-up. The Representation states it is not feasible to maintain this database internally and therefore requires a specialised contractor to perform and manage this service.

Key administrative details and milestones

Structured extraction: answers to the classification questions

Eligible Applicant Types

The notice does not limit eligibility to specific legal types. Based on the nature of the procurement (outsourcing to a specialised contractor) suitable applicant types are: private companies (including communication agencies and PR firms), SMEs, large enterprises, sole traders/individual consultants specialising in media relations, nonprofit organisations or NGOs with media services capability, and other legal entities able to deliver subscription/data maintenance services. Public bodies or universities could tender if allowed under procurement rules, but the contracting authority seeks an external specialised contractor so commercial media relations and data providers are the primary targets.

Funding Type

This is a public procurement tender for a service contract. The primary financial mechanism is a purchase of services financed by the contracting authority (procurement), not a grant, loan or equity instrument.

Consortium Requirement

The document does not mandate a consortium. The procedure is a negotiated procurement for a single contract. Tenders can be submitted by a single legal entity or by an economic operator in accordance with the Funding and Tenders Portal / negotiated procedure rules. If bidders propose joint ventures or consortia, they must comply with the submission rules of the procedure, but a consortium is not explicitly required.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility)

The call is issued by the European Commission Representation in Dublin and explicitly concerns media contacts in Ireland. The portal publication and contracting authority are EU institutions; typical eligibility for such EU procurement procedures is bidders established in the EU/EEA and possibly other countries covered by the EU procurement rules. The published notice does not specify exclusions or a limited list of eligible countries; therefore bidders established in EU Member States and entities able to register and submit via EU Login are the expected eligible parties. The service required focuses on Ireland (national scope).

Target Sector

Mentioned Countries

Ireland is explicitly mentioned (Representation in Dublin, media contacts in Ireland). The contracting authority is part of the European Commission (headquarters in Brussels, Belgium is implicit). No other specific countries are named.

Project Stage (Expected maturity)

Funding Amount

Application Type and Submission Method

This is a planned negotiated procedure (middle/low value). The initial step is an expression of interest submitted electronically via the Funding and Tenders Portal using an EU Login account. The document lists electronic submission (eSubmission). The anticipated workflow is: publish negotiated procedure, collect expressions of interest electronically, then launch the negotiated procedure where selected economic operators will be invited to tender.

Nature of Support

Application Stages

Based on the published timeline and the negotiated procedure model, applicants should expect at least two stages: (1) expression of interest (electronic submission through EU Login within the given window) and (2) negotiated procedure (invitation to submit offers / negotiated tendering). The contracting authority may include additional internal selection or clarification stages during the negotiated procedure, but the public timeline shows two clear public-facing stages.

Success Rates

No success rate or historical award probability is provided in the notice. For negotiated low/middle value procedures the number of participants invited may be limited by the contracting authority, which can increase or decrease the practical success rate depending on competition. The opportunity does not provide selection quotas or expected number of awardees.

Co-funding Requirement

No co-funding or matching funds are required. This is a procurement for which the contracting authority will pay the contracted supplier under the awarded contract.

Templates and Application Structure

The publication does not attach call-specific templates or tender documents. Submission is electronic via the Funding and Tenders Portal (eSubmission) using EU Login. Applicants should monitor the portal for the negotiated procedure launch (planned 26/10/2026 Europe/Dublin) to obtain full tender documents, technical specifications, award criteria, administrative forms, declaration templates, and any required supporting evidence. The portal's Funding and Tenders eForms and standard procurement templates will be applicable. Key expected components when the negotiated procedure is launched: administrative form and declarations, technical offer (methodology for compiling and maintaining the media database, data sources, categorisation approach, frequency of updates, data protection measures), commercial offer (price breakdown consistent with the estimated contract value), evidence of relevant experience and references, and legal/economic capacity documentation.

What bidders should prepare now

Risks, requirements and compliance highlights

This opportunity is procurement-based and not a funding grant. Interested economic operators must use the Funding and Tenders Portal and an EU Login account to submit expressions of interest and to access tender documents when the negotiated procedure is launched 1.

Overall summary

The European Commission Representation in Dublin intends to contract an external specialised supplier to compile and maintain a targeted media contact database for Ireland and to support distribution/targeting of press releases and event/briefing invitations. The contracting mechanism is a planned negotiated procedure for a service contract with an estimated total value of €35,000 and a maximum duration up to 48 MONTH. Interested suppliers must express interest electronically via the Funding and Tenders Portal using EU Login during the published window (08/10/2026 to 23/10/2026). Full tender documents will be published when the negotiated procedure is launched (indicative date 26/10/2026). Bidders should prepare GDPR-compliant data handling approaches, evidence of media database management experience in Ireland, service level proposals for maintenance and updates, and a pricing model suitable to the stated budget and contract duration.

Footnotes

1. 1EU Login is required to subscribe to calls for tenders, submit questions and submit tenders electronically via the Funding and Tenders Portal. Create or manage an account at the EU Login help page accessible from the Funding and Tenders Portal.

Executive Summary

This opportunity is a planned European Commission procurement for a specialised service provider to compile, maintain and manage contact lists for journalists and media production staff in Ireland, and to support the targeted distribution of press releases and invitations issued by the European Commission Representation in Dublin. It is a procurement contract rather than a grant, so applicants would be seeking payment for delivering services rather than financial support for an independent project.

The notice is an advance publication of the contracting authority’s intention to launch a future negotiated low or middle value procedure. It is not itself a call for tenders and does not yet contain the complete procurement documents, final specifications, award criteria or contractual terms.1

Opportunity Identification

The Funding and Tenders Portal is the European Commission’s platform for publishing funding and procurement opportunities and for managing electronic participation processes.2

Key Details

The principal characteristics of the planned procurement are as follows.

Purpose and Scope of Work

The required service is intended to give the Representation in Dublin a reliable and current media contact database that it cannot efficiently maintain internally. The database is expected to support the identification of relevant media categories and the targeted circulation of press releases, event invitations and briefing invitations.

The likely service components include the following activities, subject to confirmation in the future invitation and specifications.

The description suggests that the central requirement is not general public relations consultancy or media buying. It is the provision and continuous management of accurate Irish media intelligence and contact data, potentially combined with targeted press distribution services.

Applicant Profile and Eligibility

The opportunity is most relevant to established media intelligence providers, press distribution companies, media databases, public relations agencies, communications consultancies and specialist information service providers with demonstrable coverage of the Irish media market.

Potential applicants should be able to demonstrate the following capabilities.

The published notice does not specify nationality, legal form, minimum turnover, technical capacity thresholds, professional references, insurance requirements or subcontracting conditions. These matters should be treated as unconfirmed until the negotiated procedure documents are issued.

A sole economic operator may be suitable if it has the necessary Irish media coverage and technical capability. A consortium or subcontracting arrangement could also be commercially relevant where one party provides the media database and another provides distribution technology or communications support, but the permissibility and required declarations must be checked in the final procurement documents.

Financial Scale and Commercial Structure

The estimated total contract value is €35,000 for the maximum 48 month duration. If the full value and duration are used, the indicative average value is approximately €8,750 per year, or approximately €729 per month. These are simple averages and do not establish the payment schedule, minimum purchase commitment, annual budget allocation or volume of services.

The notice does not state whether the €35,000 estimate includes taxes, reimbursable expenses, optional services, renewals or all possible extensions. The final procurement documents should be reviewed for the applicable tax treatment, invoicing arrangements, price structure and any maximum call-off or deliverable-based payment conditions.

There is no grant funding rate because this is not a grant scheme. The successful contractor would receive contractual remuneration for accepted services under the resulting procurement contract. No co-financing percentage, lump-sum grant, eligible cost category or applicant contribution is indicated.

Contract Duration and Timing

The maximum stated contract duration is 48 months. The notice does not provide a confirmed contract signature date or service commencement date. The indicative sequence is expression of interest from 8 October 2026, expression of interest deadline on 23 October 2026, and indicative launch of the negotiated procedure on 26 October 2026.

The launch date is expressly indicative and may change. Interested providers should monitor the official portal, subscribe to the opportunity where possible and prepare to respond promptly because negotiated low or middle value procedures can provide limited time between invitation and submission.

Submission and Registration Requirements

Expressions of interest must be submitted electronically through the submission address associated with the opportunity. An EU Login account is required to submit an expression of interest, subscribe to the procedure, submit questions and use relevant electronic procurement functions.

Applicants should complete the following preparations before the expression of interest window opens.

The malformed bracket characters in the portal export do not affect the substantive requirement: the submission is electronic and requires EU Login authentication. The exact documents and fields required for the expression of interest should be confirmed in the live submission interface.

Likely Evaluation Considerations

No award criteria are published in the available notice. Based on the service description, the future procedure may assess technical quality, relevant experience, geographic and sector coverage in Ireland, database accuracy, update frequency, data protection controls, service responsiveness and price.

Applicants should be prepared to explain how they will measure and maintain data quality. Useful evidence may include update schedules, validation methods, duplicate detection, bounce or delivery monitoring, contact categorisation rules, correction workflows, audit trails and service-level reporting.

A strong response would distinguish between journalists, editors, producers, presenters, researchers, freelancers, specialist publications, broadcasters, online media, regional media and other relevant media production roles. It should also explain how changes in employment and contact preferences will be identified and reflected quickly.

Data Protection and Compliance

The service will involve professional contact information relating to identifiable individuals. The future contractor should expect data protection and information security obligations to be material to the procurement, even though the published notice does not set out the applicable contractual clauses.

Applicants should be ready to address the legal basis and transparency arrangements for collecting and using contact data, data minimisation, accuracy, retention, access controls, secure transmission, processor or controller roles, incident response, deletion procedures and any use of third-party databases or distribution platforms.

The final documents should be checked for specific requirements under European Union data protection rules, confidentiality, intellectual property, database rights, security measures, hosting location, subcontractor approval and restrictions on using the Commission’s data for unrelated commercial purposes.

Opportunity Strengths and Risks

Recommended Applicant Preparation

Overall Assessment

This is a small, specialised public procurement opportunity with potential value for a provider that can combine Irish media knowledge, structured contact data, continuous verification and reliable press distribution support. The four year maximum duration may provide recurring revenue, but the total estimated value is limited and the notice does not confirm a guaranteed volume of work.

The immediate opportunity is to submit an expression of interest by the stated deadline, not to submit a full tender under the current notice. Applicants should therefore focus first on registration, eligibility readiness and a concise capability presentation, while avoiding assumptions about final technical requirements or award methodology until the negotiated procedure is formally launched.

Source and Qualification Note

The authoritative opportunity page is the European Commission Funding and Tenders Portal record for this procedure: European Commission opportunity record. The record states that this is a planned publication announcing an intended future negotiated low or middle value procedure and should not be treated as the final call for tenders.1

The general Funding and Tenders Portal provides access to EU funding and procurement opportunities and electronic participation services.2

Footnotes

1. 1European Commission Funding and Tenders Portal, Service to Manage Media Contacts and Distribute Press Releases, procedure EC-COMM/DUB/2026/LVP/0608-EXA. The notice contains the published scope, estimated value, maximum duration, indicative dates and electronic submission conditions, but does not provide the final procurement documents.
2. 2European Commission Funding and Tenders Portal overview, which describes the portal as the entry point for calls for proposals, calls for tenders and related electronic participation services: Funding and Tenders Portal.