eCONTENTPLUS Call text

DRAFT - Call for proposals for indirect actions under the multiannual Community Programme to make digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable

(The eContentplus Programme)

TEXT WITH EEA RELEVANCE

1. In accordance with decision No. 456/2005/EC of 9 March 2005 by the European  Parliament and the Council adopting a multiannual Community Programme to make digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable, facilitating the creation and diffusion of information in areas of public interest, at Community level (hereinafter referred to as the eContentplus Programme), the European Commission hereby invites proposals for indirect actions to be financed under the programme.

2. In conformity with Article 3(4) of this decision, the European Commission adopted a Work Programme2 for the year 2008 to serve as the basis for implementing the programme. The objectives, priorities, indicative budget and types of indirect actions referred to in this call notice correspond to those set out in that Work Programme.

Geographic information

3.1 Best practice networks for geographic information

Educational content

4.1 Best practice networks for educational content

4.2 Targeted projects for educational content

Digital libraries

5.1 Best practice networks for interoperability of digital libraries

5.2 Best practice networks for the use and services of the European Digital Library

5.3 Targeted projects for cultural content

5.4 Targeted projects for scientific/scholarly content

5.5 A Thematic network for co-ordinating and supporting the European Digital Library.

3. Proposals are called by 12 June 2008 at 17h00 (Luxembourg local time) following which proposals will be evaluated. That deadline is a fixed deadline, applying to receipt by the Commission. Proposals not received by this deadline will not be considered.

4. Information on how to prepare and submit proposals is given in the Guide for proposers. This documentation, along with the Work Programme and any other information relevant to this call, can be obtained from the eContentplus website http://ec.europa.eu/econtentplus or the European Commission at the following address:

European Commission

Information Society and Media Directorate General

The eContentplus Programme - Office EUFO 1181

Jean Monnet Building

Rue Alcide de Gasperi

L-2920 Luxembourg

Email: eContentplus@ec.europa.eu

Fax: (+352) 4301-30269

Proposals responding to this call must be prepared using the forms provided with the Guide for Proposers and sent to the Commission before the deadline by registered mail, or delivered by hand or by courier4, at the address indicated above. Proposals sent by fax or e-mail will be excluded. The indicative overall budget available for this call is € 42.5 million of Community contribution. Grants to proposals submitted in response to this call will be awarded through grant agreements.

The evaluation of proposals will give rise to a list of proposals to be funded. This list may be complemented by a reserve list of proposals of sufficient quality, to be funded in case of budget availability.

5. The call for proposals under this Work Programme is open for participation to all legal entities (public and private) established in the Member States and in EFTA States which are contracting parties to the EEA Agreement (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein).

It is further open to legal entities established in Turkey, Croatia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. If grant agreements are concluded with consortia including legal entities from these countries, such legal entities will however only be eligible for funding if the country concerned has effectively joined the Programme by means of a Memorandum of Understanding by the date of signature of the grant agreement. Up-to-date information on which countries are part of the programme is available on the eContentplus website at http://ec.europa.eu/econtentplus.

Legal entities established in third countries and international organisations may take part in all projects without Community funding.

3 ec.europa.eu/econtentplus

4 For courier services requiring a telephone number for the recipient, please use +352-4301 36245.

There are no formal minimum or maximum requirements for the number of applicants in proposals. However, the European added value of the proposal will have to be clearly demonstrated. Entities eligible for participation

5 are hereby invited to submit proposals that address actions described in the eContentplus Work Programme (see point 2 above).

6. The evaluation of proposals will be based on the principles of transparency and equality of treatment. It will be carried out by the Commission with the assistance of independent experts. Each submission will be assessed on the basis of the evaluation criteria, which are divided in three categories: eligibility criteria, award criteria and selection criteria. Only proposals meeting the requirements of the eligibility criteria shall be evaluated further. The evaluation criteria are presented below:

Eligibility criteria

On receipt, all proposals will be subject to the following eligibility check, to ensure that they conform to the requirements of the call, and to the submission procedure:

– Timely arrival. Receipt of proposal by the Commission on or before the deadline date and time established in the call (see point 3 above).

– Proposal completeness. Proposals which are substantially incomplete - that is to say that the forms do not include sufficient information to identify the partners, their legal status and their ability to carry out the work and to evaluate the scope of the proposed project - will be excluded.

Award criteria

In order to evaluate the relative merits of the proposals received, each project type (targeted projects, best practice networks and thematic networks) will be subject to a specific set of award criteria with specific weightings. A detailed description of the award criteria is presented in the Work Programme.

Selection criteria

Selection criteria serve to ensure that proposers possess sufficient resources to cofinance the project as well as the professional competencies and qualifications required to complete the work successfully.

Selection criteria are initially applied on the basis of the information supplied in the proposal. Should the analysis of this information give rise to cases of weak financial capacity or professional competence, compensating actions such as financial guarantees or other actions may be necessary. Successful proposals called to negotiations will be the subject of a formal legal and financial validation as a requirement to the issuing of a grant agreement.

A detailed description of the selection criteria is presented in the Work Programme.

7. Please make sure to cite the relevant programme activity in all correspondence relating to this call (e.g. when requesting information or submitting a proposal). In submitting a proposal, proposers accept the procedures and conditions as described in this call and in the documents to which it refers. All proposals received by the European Commission will be treated in strict confidence. The European Community pursues an equal opportunities policy. In this context, women are particularly encouraged to either submit proposals or to be involved in their submission.