The Library of Congress is pleased to announce that a new version of the CIP Data Block, the cataloging information printed by publishers at the front of the book, will be implemented by the Cataloging in Publication Program this summer, no earlier than July 1, 2015.
Over the last year and a half, the Library of Congress with the assistance of experts from the school, public and academic library communities has been investigating a new layout for the CIP Data Block. The new layout is the result of an analysis of survey results done in 2014 that asked institutions what should be kept, added, or removed from the CIP Data Block to meet the needs of the twenty-first century bibliographic environment. There are numerous changes to the layout including the use of labels to clearly identify the different components within the block, addition of Resource Description and Access (RDA) and electronic data elements, and a URL that links directly to the LC catalog for easy retrieval of bibliographic records. The new layout was shared at the 2015 Midwinter Meeting of the American Library Association. After incorporating recommendations received at the conference, the Library of Congress is ready to move forward on implementation of the new layout.
A summary of the proposed changes, examples of the CIP Data Block in its new format, and a list of MARC fields that will be included or excluded in the new layout can be found at:
Cataloging in Publication Data Block
(Word, 25 KB)
The revisions to the CIP data block, as it will appear in books, will not impact MARC records created by the Library of Congress, and the Library's MARC record distribution process will remain unchanged.
If you have any further questions or comments about the new layout, you can send them to Karl Debus-López, Chief, U.S. Programs, Law, and Literature Division at the Library of Congress at kdeb@loc.gov.. Please send your comments by June 1, 2015.
