Commercial Platforms Initiative

GSA has awarded contracts to three e-marketplace platform providers as part of implementation efforts for the Commercial Platforms program and Section 846 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.  Awarding these no-cost contracts to Amazon Business, Fisher Scientific, and Overstock.com, Inc. allows GSA to test the use of commercial e-commerce portals for purchases below the micro-purchase threshold of $10,000 using a proof-of-concept (for up to three years).

These contracts and platforms will be available to federal agencies as part of a governmentwide effort to modernize the buying experience for agencies and help them gain insights into open-market online spend occurring outside of existing contracts.  It is estimated that open market purchases on government purchase cards represent an addressable market of $6 billion annually. 

The goal of the proof of concept is to provide a modern buying solution for federal customers and increase transparency on agency spending that’s already taking place with better data through this solution. Further, this solution leverages the government’s buying power and increases supply chain security awareness with a governmentwide approach.  According to GSA Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Julie Dunne, the proof- of- concept will start small and be refined through repeated testing. GSA will continue to solicit stakeholder feedback as has been  the case throughout the program’s development. 

GSA anticipates the e-marketplace platforms will be available for use in the next 30 days. For updates on availability of the proof of concept, please continue to follow the Commercial Platforms Interact group. 

For the full press release, please click here.