DUBLIN, Ohio, US -- November 9, 2010. Norwegian consortium BIBSYS has signed an agreement with OCLC to supply its new Library System based on OCLC's Web-scale Management Services, a next-generation Web-based suite of library management tools for metadata management, acquisitions, circulation, license management and workflow.
BIBSYS provides library and information systems to Norway's university libraries, college libraries, a number of research libraries and the National Library. This agreement is the culmination of a review process over the course of a year to identify a replacement to the existing BIBSYS Library System.
An important factor in the decision to choose OCLC, as BIBSYS indicated, was that OCLC had started the process of developing a next-generation system, based on a service-oriented architecture, which has uniform handling of all media types. Because of the architecture, BIBSYS and its member libraries can develop their own custom applications for library management activities. In addition, they can expose and share those applications as Web services on the platform for other members to use. This ability to collectively innovate will generate cost savings, greater efficiency and the ability to better leverage collected data and intelligence.
"BIBSYS is looking forward to implementing a next-generation library system in close co-operation with our member libraries and OCLC. Our aim is to give researchers and students in Norway an excellent system to support their work. We also look forward to a library system that can be closely integrated with other administrative systems that are used in the higher education community in Norway," said Roy Gundersen, Director, BIBSYS.
"It is a great honor for OCLC to work with BIBSYS on this ground-breaking national system for Norwegian libraries," said Jay Jordan, OCLC President and CEO. "It is also a tremendous opportunity for both BIBSYS and OCLC to implement next-generation technology that will enable these libraries to improve services for their constituents."
"Both BIBSYS and OCLC have long histories of bringing innovation to the automation of library systems and we are delighted with this decision," said Rein van Charldorp, Managing Director, OCLC EMEA. "Web-scale Management Services are a natural extension of our mission to help libraries share costs through cooperation."
OCLC's strategy is to move traditional library back-office operations and associated data to the network, sometimes called "the cloud." Web-scale Management Services effectively integrate components such as acquisition, license management and circulation with other OCLC services also operating at Web-scale including cooperative cataloguing through WorldCat and discovery through WorldCat Local, to leverage efficiencies, lower cost of ownership and free libraries to spend time on unique local services and innovations.
By delivering truly network-level services and not simply Internet-hosted solutions of current library services, OCLC's Web-scale Management Services provide automation and management services to library organisations, allowing them to share data and workflows in ways never before possible.
The continued involvement of OCLC members is crucial to the success of Web-scale Management Services, according to Mr. Van Charldorp. For the past year, OCLC has worked with an Advisory Council of libraries to help guide efforts to build these innovative new services for libraries. The experience provided by the wide range of library professionals on the Council has been instrumental in ensuring that OCLC creates a strategy that meets the needs of libraries and library groups such as BIBSYS.
About OCLC
Founded in 1967, OCLC is a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world's information and reducing library costs. More than 72,000 libraries in 171 countries have used OCLC services to locate, acquire, catalogue, lend, preserve and manage library materials. Researchers, students, faculty, scholars, professional librarians and other information seekers use OCLC services to obtain bibliographic, abstract and full-text information when and where they need it. OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the world's largest online database for discovery of library resources. Search WorldCat on the Web at www.worldcat.org. For more information, visit www.oclc.org.
About BIBSYS
BIBSYS is a key supplier of products and services for higher educational institutions, other research institutions in Norway, public administrative institutions and the National Library of Norway, in all more than 100 libraries. BIBSYS offers researchers, students and others an easy access to library resources by providing a variety of search possibilities as well as simple loan and order functions. It delivers a range of integrated products for the internal operation of the libraries. The products and services are developed in cooperation with the libraries it serves. It is BIBSYS' aim to be the most important strategic tool for the higher educational libraries, enabling them to provide the right services to their users. Read more at http://www.bibsys.no/english.html.
