Innovative Interface is a wholly owned business of Clarivate

Breeding, Marshall. ProQuest Acquisition of Innovative Proceeds. December 2020. Smart Libraries Newsletter. ProQuest announced that it has received notification from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that the review of its acquisition of Innovative Interfaces has been completed. According to ProQuest Chief Executive Officer Matti Shem Tov, the acquisition of Innovative was accepted in its entirety and without further stipulations. ProQuest announced in December 2019 that it had acquired Innovative Interfaces from its previous owners, investment firms HGGC (formerly Huntsman Gay Global Capital) and JMI Equity in a transaction that closed on January 16, 2020. The FTC review commenced in February 2020, with ProQuest making a public statement acknowledging it on March 13, 2020. No specific information is available on what triggered this acquisition for review by the FTC, nor why it took place after the transaction had closed.

Breeding, Marshall. FTC Reviews ProQuest Acquisition of Innovative Interfaces. May 2020. Smart Libraries Newsletter. The acquisition of Innovative Interfaces by ProQuest, announced in December 2019, is one of the major events in the history of the library technology industry. The deal in which ProQuest purchased Innovative from its previous investors, HCCG and JMI Equity, closed on January 16, 2020. Innovative has become a wholly owned subsidiary of ProQuest, with Yariv Kursh in place as general manager. This transaction has attracted the attention of the Federal Trade Commission, which has initiated a review of the impact of the acquisition on the competitive environment. No specific timeframe has been given on the review, nor can any outcomes be predicted until it is concluded.

Breeding, Marshall. Update on the Acquisition of Innovative by ProQuest. March 2020. Smart Libraries Newsletter. The acquisition of Innovative Interfaces by ProQuest featured in the last issue of Smart Libraries Newsletter closed on January 15, 2020 and is now finalized. Closing the acquisition begins the business and product integration process, which will play out over the next couple of years. Innovative ultimately will be incorporated into the Ex Libris subsidiary of ProQuest.

Breeding, Marshall. ProQuest to acquire Innovative Interfaces. January 2020. Smart Libraries Newsletter. In a move that further consolidates the library technology industry, Ex Libris has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Innovative Interfaces, Inc. from its private equity investors. Since December 2015, Ex Libris has been owned by ProQuest. In addition to its role as a major content provider to libraries, ProQuest is now responsible for a growing portfolio of library technology products, including major systems for resource management, content discovery, materials acquisition, reading list integration, and research services. While ProQuest faces major competition for each of its product categories, this move substantially strengthens its position in the sector and broadens its scope to include public libraries.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative’s New Business Strategy and Management Team. March 2017. Smart Libraries Newsletter. Innovative Interfaces, under the leadership of its new Chief Executive Officer James Tallman, has begun to execute major changes to strengthen its position in the library technology industry. Innovative has expanded its management team to include a new set of executives with proven abilities in other sectors to take the company forward. In its next phase, Innovative intends to make major investments to transform itself into an “enterprise class library solutions company,” adopting practices and methodologies that have proven successful in other technology-oriented business sectors. These investments will also support new product development initiatives.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces acquires VTLS. July 2014. Smart Libraries Newsletter. Innovative Interfaces has acquired Blacksburg, VA-based VTLS as part of its strategic expansion strategy. This move follows the acquisition of Polaris, announced in April 2014. Both acquisitions were conducted in parallel, with each transition closing on a different schedule. The acquisition of VTLS significantly expands Innovative's international reach and brings a number of new technology products under its corporate umbrella. VTLS had been the longest standing company remaining under the ownership and management of its founder in the library technology industry. VTLS has been active since 1974, first as a department of the Newman Library of Virginia Tech University and since 1985, as an independent company.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces acquires Polaris Library Systems. May 2014. Smart Libraries Newsletter. In a move that further consolidates the library automation industry, Innovative Interfaces, Inc. has purchased Polaris Library Systems. Innovative is one of the largest companies in the industry, with an international presence and customers from all types of libraries. The acquisition significantly strengthens its presence in the US public library arena because of Polaris’s success in winning the majority of municipal library procurements in recent years.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces Absorbs SkyRiver and Withdraws Lawsuit Against OCLC. April 2013. Smart Libraries Newsletter. In a major shift in strategy reflecting a more collaborative style of its new ownership and management, Innovative interfaces has withdrawn the lawsuit it filed against OCLC in July 2010. SkyRiver Technologies, the sister company and lead plaintiff of the suit, has been absorbed into Innovative Interfaces, which will integrate the SkyRiver cataloging service into its product offerings.

Breeding, Marshall. VTLS Moves to Open Skies. March 2013. Smart Libraries Newsletter. VTLS launched a new product suite, called VTLS Open Skies, positioned as a library services platform. A major step for VTLS, this new strategy takes the most successful components in the current arsenal of technologies and products and rebuilds them into a comprehensive platform for the management and access to library resources.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces Ownership Update. March 2013. Smart Libraries Newsletter. Smart Libraries Newsletter has previously reported on the majority acquisition of Innovative Interfaces, Inc. and SkyRiver Technologies by a pair of private equity firms, Huntsman Gay Global Capital and JMI Equity. In the initial transaction, company cofounder Jerry Kline sold the majority of the company, but retained a stake and served as the chairman of a newly constituted Board of Directors. In a subsequent transaction that closed the end of January 2013, Kline divested his remaining shares to the investment firms. Huntsman Gay and JI Equity now own 100 percent of Innovative Interfaces and SkyRiver. No information is publicly available regarding financial details such as the valuation of the company or the portion of shares retained by Kline following the initial transaction. Kline also has resigned from the company's board of directors, having divested his ownership and concluding his strategic and operational involvement.

Breeding, Marshall. New Executive Leadership at Innovative Interfaces. October 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. Innovative Interfaces, Inc. has appointed Kim Massana as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective upon the announcement on August 27, 2012. Jerry Kline continues as Chairman and Neil Block as President.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces Joins the Private Equity Club. April 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. Innovative Interfaces, one of the veteran companies of the library automation industry, has been one of the major holdouts in the wave of private equity investments that has reshaped the library automation industry over the last six years. The company has remained under the sole ownership of its co-founder Jerry Kline. That position now changes as a pair of private equity firms, Huntsman Gay Global Capital and JMI Equity have made strategic investments in Innovative Interfaces, Inc. and its sister company SkyRiver Technology Solutions. Following the transaction Kline retains partial equity in the company and will serve as the Chairman of the company's reconstituted Board of Directors and will continue involvement in the leadership of the company. Rich Lawson, co-founder and Managing Partner of Huntsman Gay serves as Vice Chairman and JMI Equity will hold a seat on the new Board. No changes in the executive management of Innovative or SkyRiver are planned.

View all featured content about Innovative Interfaces, Inc.

May 26, 2023. Innovative announces Vega Discover customization features, including ready-to-use Kids Catalog design. In early May, Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced new customization features for Vega Discover catalog homepages at the 2023 Innovative Users Group annual conference, enabling libraries to engage patrons by promoting custom catalogs for unique interests and topics. Innovative also introduced Vega Discover Kids Catalog, designed to attract younger patrons' attention through visual icons, colorful buttons, and playful backgrounds, while supporting the ability to automatically limit search results to age-appropriate library materials.

---

May 25, 2023. Innovative Travels to Sacramento, California to the California Library Association Annual Conference. Innovative, part of Clarivate, is pleased to participate as an exhibitor at the California Public Library Conference being held this year in Sacramento, CA June 1-2, 2023.

---

May 24, 2023. Innovative travels to Atlantic City, New Jersey to the New Jersey Library Association Annual Conference. May 23, 2023. Innovative, part of Clarivate, is pleased to participate as an exhibitor at the New Jersey Public Library Conference being held this year in Atlantic City, New Jersey May 31- June 2, 2023.

---

May 11, 2023. Innovative announces Vega Promote Web for easy website creation. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced a new solution, Vega Promote Web, to give libraries greater ease of use and autonomy when creating and managing library websites. Vega Promote Web offers an affordable, no-code and open solution to enable libraries to easily create and enhance their digital presence. Powered by Wix, a leading global SaaS platform, Vega Promote Web provides libraries the tools and all-in-one solution to build, manage, and grow their online presence. With integrated and Innovative custom-built components, libraries will have a single digital experience including membership registration, patron account management, book catalogs, event spaces, promotional showcases and additional services the library offers.

---

May 10, 2023. Innovative Users Group Opens 31st Annual Conference. Innovative, part of Clarivate, is pleased to participate in the opening of the 31st annual Innovative Users Group (IUG) conference in Phoenix, Arizona. This will be the first in-person conference for the group since 2019. For the next four days, library professionals from across the US and around the world will be participating in 71 sessions led by their peer library professionals and Innovative staff.

---

May 9, 2023. Aurora Public Library chooses Vega Discover. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that the Aurora Public Library District in Illinois has selected Vega Discover as their new discovery layer.

---

May 5, 2023. Dozens of Innovative Libraries launch LX Starter for modern email notices. Innovative, part of Clarivate, is excited to share that more than 30 libraries have now launched LX Starter for modern and professionally designed patron email notices. LX Starter enables libraries to set up email notices tailored to each library system's branding and personalized to their patrons.

---

May 1, 2023. The New York Public Library launches new catalog with Vega Discover, the premier discovery tool created by Innovative. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced that The New York Public Library has launched its new catalog for patrons using Vega Discover, a full-featured discovery tool. The new catalog provides millions of library card users with improved access to the Library's extensive circulating collection. NYPL joins 60 libraries who have launched Vega Discover to the public.

---

April 28, 2023. Vega Discover introduces newly designed, user-friendly homepage available for early access institutions. Innovative, part of Clarivate, announced the introduction of a user-friendly Vega Discover homepage designer and design templates for early access institutions. Nineteen libraries have joined the early access program to begin designing their catalog homepages and many of the participants will have their designs shared at the 2023 Innovative Users Group annual conference. As libraries continue to focus on increasing patron engagement and raising awareness of the library's content and upcoming events, the homepage provides another point of engagement in the patron's library experience.

---

April 26, 2023. Innovative travels to Auckland, New Zealand for the Public Libraries National Forum. Innovative, part of Clarivate, is pleased to participate as an exhibitor at the Public Libraries National Forum being held this year in Auckland, New Zealand on 3-4 May.

---

View All Innovative Interfaces, Inc. News Announcements

Dec 04, 2019 ProQuest Acquires Innovative Interfaces
In a move that further consolidates the library technology industry, Ex Libris has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Innovative Interfaces, Inc. from its private equity investors. Since December 2015, Ex Libris has been owned by ProQuest. In addition to its role as a major content provider to libraries, ProQuest is now responsible for a growing portfolio of library technology products, including major systems for resource management, content discovery, materials acquisition, reading list integration, and research services. While ProQuest faces major competition for each of its product categories, this move substantially strengthens its position in the sector and broadens its scope to include public libraries.

Jun 01, 2014 Innovative Interfaces acquires VTLS
Innovative Interfaces has acquired Blacksburg, VA-based VTLS as part of its strategic expansion strategy. This move follows the acquisition of Polaris, announced in April 2014. Both acquisitions were conducted in parallel, with each transition closing on a different schedule. The acquisition of VTLS significantly expands Innovative's international reach and brings a number of new technology products under its corporate umbrella. VTLS had been the longest standing company remaining under the ownership and management of its founder in the library technology industry. VTLS has been active since 1974, first as a department of the Newman Library of Virginia Tech University and since 1985, as an independent company.

Mar 31, 2014 Innovative Interfaces acquires Polaris Library Systems
Through a transaction that closed on March 31, 2014, ownership of Polaris changed hands from its Syracuse-based private investors to Innovative Interfaces, which is in turn owned by private equity investors, HGGC (formerly Huntsman Gay Global Capital) and JMI Equity.

Feb 01, 2013 Huntsman Gay Global Capital and JMI Equity purchase remaining shares of Innovative Interfaces
Huntsman Gay Global Capital and JMI Equity now fully own the Innovative Interfaces, Inc., having purchased the remaining shares from Innovative's founder, Jerry Kline. Kline also has resigned from Innovative's Board of Directors.

Aug 27, 2012 Kim Massana named as Chief Executive Officer
Innovative Interfaces announced that Mr. Kim Massana will join the executive ranks as Chief Executive Officer. In this role, Massana will be charged with expanding the Company's product and business development. The Lancer Group served as the executive search firm that recruited Massana to Innovative.

Aug 09, 2010 Neil Block becomes president of Innovative Interfaces, Inc.
The company today announced the promotion of Neil Block to the position of President of Innovative Interfaces. In his new role, Block will lead the day-to-day operations of the company including sales, marketing, product development, and customer service. As President, Block will report directly to Jerry Kline, Founder and Chairman of Innovative Interfaces. He began his new duties effective August 9th.

Oct 16, 2001 Jerry Kline purchases the outstanding shares of the company from co-founder Steve Silberstein
Innovative Interfaces announced that Jerry Kline, co-founder and CEO, has reached an agreement to purchase the outstanding shares of the company from co-founder Steve Silberstein. Upon closing of the transaction, which is expected by the end of the year, Kline will assume full ownership of the company.

Apr 30, 1997 Innovative acquires SLS
From Library Systems Newsletter: Innovative Interfaces, Inc., has purchased SLS Information Systems of Great Britain. SLS has over 700 installations in Europe, including more than 50 in academic libraries. Its primary product, known as "Libertas," runs on Digital AXP computers using OpenVMS as the operating system and FORTRAN and "C" as the programming languages. The DBMS is proprietary. SLS was owned by 16 UK universities. Innovative purchased all of the outstanding stock for cash. The deal includes subsidiaries in Scandinavia (Stockholm) and Spain (Madrid). SLS currently has a staff of 46 people.

Oct 15, 1992 Bob Walton Joins Innovative Interfaces Inc. as Executive Vice President
From Library Systems Newsletter: Bob Walton will join the management team of Innovative as Executive Vice President. As Executive Vice President, Walton will serve as Innovative's Chief Financial Officer, including responsibility for Marketing, Sales and Administration.

1978 Innovative Interfaces, Inc. founded by Jerry Kline and Steve Silberstein

View Full Product Report

2022 Innovative Interfaces, Inc. Accomplishments Narrative

Online experiences with all manner of media continue to inform staff and patron expectations at the library. Innovative is committed to helping libraries provide a premier experience to their communities and to make management at the library as smooth as possible to free library staff to directly serve their communities.

Libraries represent one of the best examples of community relationship builders in our world today. Given the right tools, a great potential exists for libraries to increasingly strengthen those relationships, form new connections and reframe the way libraries engage and transform their communities. Innovative creates the technologies that deepen the impact of library engagement, providing the power and scale to create personalized experiences for every user, in every community 24/7.

In 2021, Innovative became a part of Clarivate, providing an even stronger foundation for supporting libraries and the essential role they fill in communities worldwide. Customers are at the center of all we do.

Our Commitment to Library Success:

• Creating and updating products begin with the needs of libraries.
• The library-led Innovative Users Group (IUG) provides spaces for Innovative users to form community, share ideas, and organize their requests for new features. From the 700 institutional members of the IUG to the thousands of librarians who have engaged with Idea Lab, Innovative values our partnership with this community of users.
• The Vega LX product lines have been created in partnership with library partners from the beginning, relying more than ever on libraries as co-creators of Innovative solutions.

With opportunities like the Support forums, our developer community, Productboard and Idea Lab (soon to be Idea Exchange), our customers can hear directly from us and your peers about our latest solutions, creative product uses, and best practices for library processes and tools.

Our foundational ILS platforms are highly rated: Sierra is recognized as providing good to excellent value to 75% of our surveyed customers, and many customers rate Polaris 4 or 5 stars out of 5 (source: https://www.techvalidate.com/product-research/innovative-interfaces).

Delivering Solutions

In 2022, Innovative delivered new products as well as regular updates to its in-market product line.

Innovative New Products:

• Vega Program – This event and room management tool has been designed specifically for libraries, letting staff manage all parts of event registration, from creating flyers to identifying age ranges and patron types as targets for events; to letting patrons view not only which rooms are available when, but also search for rooms based on room capacity and book rooms even without a library card. Vega Program also handles payments and refunds.
• Vega Promote – Increasing engagement with library programming is a high priority for libraries, and Vega Promote is designed to do just this as an email marketing tool to empower staff to create targeted and relevant communications, with an easy-to-use interface with drag-and-drop design with a library millions of royalty-free images—or libraries can upload their own images for a customized look and feel. Showcases from Vega Discover can also be included in emails and Promote also provides extensive list management that includes automatic unsubscribe and bounceback handling.
• LX Starter - This communications layer is available at no additional charge for Sierra and Polaris libraries and provides an email creation and management tool that provides a modern interface to design and manage account and circulation-related emails to patrons. LX Starter includes access to images to create visually appealing emails that raise the bar on what staff and patrons can expect from their library experience and includes options for automatic messages to patrons along their membership journeys.

Trusted In-Market Products:

• Vega Discover – With updates automatically going live to libraries every two weeks, 2022 saw Discover add support for library consortia, along with increased interoperability with industry tools like the Bolinda Borrowbox and Axis 360. Discover also saw improvements for patrons to better manage their account and modify holds and improved visual integration with library websites.
• Sierra - Sierra had two significant releases during 2022 that included library-requested features; a simplified FTP login, an improved workflow for damaged items, support for Windows 11, and flexibility to configure multiple courtesy notices.
• Polaris - This ILS that is a favorite of public libraries had two releases in 2022, providing more acquisitions and cataloging features to Leap, meaning even more staff can use the flexible web-based interface for all of their tasks. Polaris also had tech improvements to directly connect to Azure AD and enhanced patron password improvements.
• Mobile Worklists – The mobile staff app for Sierra users gained the ability to perform patron check-outs in 2022. Mobile Worklists also saw increased customization options added in 2022, giving staff a streamlined experience for their mobile tasks.
• Innovative Mobile - The Innovative Mobile patron mobile app offers patrons self-check and curbside pickup tools, along the features of patron library app. 2022 saw Innovative Mobile gain the ability to provide a full Vega Discover experience in the mobile environment. Account management tools that include linked barcode storage for families are popular with Innovative libraries, alongside website content that opens in the app, translation capabilities and a clean interface that can be customized with library branding.
• Mobile Worklists – The staff mobile app, continued to be updated in 2022, with support for patron checkouts added to the app, and support for greater customization to further streamline app use according to the staff member’s needs.

Winning Awards

Innovative products continue to delight libraries around the world. Three Innovative products received platinum distinction, the highest level of distinction, from LibraryWorks’ ninth annual Modern Library Awards:

• Vega Discover – second consecutive year winning the platinum award
• Polaris Leap – continuing to win platinum
• Innovative Resource Sharing (INN-Reach), won the platinum distinction, rising from the previous year
• Polaris ILS – received the gold award
• Mobile Worklists – received the gold distinction

The Modern Library Awards is an annual program that relies on the input of tens of thousands of librarians to recognize the best products and services in the library market, based on criteria that includes functionality, value, and customer service. Innovative values the MLA awards as evidence of the quality of our products.

Sierra ILS

In 2022 the Sierra ILS added features suggested by patrons in support of modern library requirements.

Customers continue to give Sierra high marks in a 2022 survey, available at https://www.techvalidate.com/collections/sierra-customer-research

• 90% of survey respondents said Sierra had better overall functionality than the competition
• 76% of respondents said that Innovative upholding long-term software development planning and an accessible roadmap for future releases were important for their library
• 75% of Sierra respondents rate Sierra as having Good, Great, or Excellent value for the money
• 88% believe Sierra’s performance is better than the competition

Polaris ILS

Polaris continues to meet libraries’ requirements for a reliable ILS that streamlines back-office operations and provides patrons with a seamless experience. The Leap staff web client lets libraries access the power of the Polaris ILS via a browser interface that can be accessed from any laptop or tablet.

• 81% of surveyed customers said that Polaris Leap has improved efficiency in check-outs, check-ins, and renewals
• 65% of respondents believe the top benefit of Leap is arming staff with full-service information away from the desk. https://www.techvalidate.com/tvid/F43-939-8E1

“Polaris is easy for patrons to use and requires minimal training for staff. We especially like the reports functions. We are able to answer questions for the library board by running specific reports.” https://www.techvalidate.com/product-research/innovative-interfaces/facts/651-70C-0FA

“Self Service features have helped greatly, especially during Covid.” https://www.techvalidate.com/product-research/innovative-interfaces/facts/C16-4EA-603

“We have been on Polaris for 20 years… Great customer service and engagement between vendors and library as a partnership.” —Larry Neal, Library Director, Clinton Macomb Public Library https://www.techvalidate.com/product-research/innovative-interfaces/facts/56F-A6E-39B

Resource Sharing

Innovative’s Resource Sharing offering, INN-Reach, helps libraries expand the collections available to their users with a modern product that helps reduce overhead.

INN-Reach has won the platinum Modern Library Service award for 2023 based on 2022 performance

2022 saw INN-Reach add an improved API to include Visiting Patron functionality

INN-Reach also added support for “Pick-up Anywhere,” adding flexibility for patrons to pick up and return materials to any of a number of locations.

“The INN-Reach product is an invaluable time-saver vs. traditional ILL and is so much more cost-efficient. We did a cost analysis after the first year and found it is also much less expensive than purchasing the titles that have been requested. By making the union catalog of holdings available to patrons online, not only can they search for specific items, but it greatly increases discovery of new titles, while providing ease of use. We formerly charged for traditional ILL services, which meant that ILL service was available only to those who knew about it and could afford it. The LINK+ group has chosen to offer this service without charge and usage has greatly increased. " - Modern Library Award respondent.

Winning New Opportunities

Our new business relationships in the previous 12 months are a testament to our focus on customer experience and innovation. These new contracts deliver services to public, academic, schools and special member libraries.

• INN-Reach 140
• Mobile (Worklists and Innovative Mobile) 98
• Polaris 205
• Sierra 503
• Vega 76

Some of Innovative’s notable wins in 2022 include:

• National Library Board of Singapore
• Kuwait University
• Ministry of Culture
• North Country Library System (New York)
• Southeast Oklahoma Library System

[View Narrative for 2021] [View Narrative for 2020] [View Narrative for 2019] [View Narrative for 2018] [View Narrative for 2017] [View Narrative for 2014] [View Narrative for 2013] [View Narrative for 2012] [View Narrative for 2011] [View Narrative for 2010] [View Narrative for 2009] [View Narrative for 2008] [View Narrative for 2007] [View Narrative for 2006] [View Narrative for 2005]