Knoxville and Knox County leaders have announced the names of the companies that made bids for a tourism contract to market Knoxville.
The city and county put out a joint request for proposal, or RFP, for a new tourism marketing contract.
Seven organizations responded, including the former Knoxville Tourism and Sports Corporation, which is now known by it's new brand Visit Knoxville.
The other groups are: Norma Cardwell & Associates, LLC, Rivr Media, Bluewater Consulting, U R Knoxville, CMO Company, and JaoPro.
Leaders say they will meet soon to open the bids and set-up a timeline for the decision making process.
They hope to have a final decision by late October, when the current funding for Visit Knoxville runs out.
The city and county plan to issue an initial three year award.
The RFP process comes in response to spending concerns about the former KTSC, which were uncovered by a 10News investigation. KTSC's former CEO, Gloria Ray, was forced into retirement in February amid legal issues with her employment contract.