A change in service offerings—NetLibrary and FirstSearch

In March, OCLC made some announcements regarding a significant shift in the scope of services we deliver to members. Specifically, we will increase our focus on and investment in WorldCat, metadata services and Web-scale Library Management Services, and transition out of the role of reseller of eBooks, eAudiobooks and other eContent provided by vendors.

As part of this shift, EBSCO Publishing has acquired the assets of the NetLibrary division. The purchase includes the NetLibrary eBook and eAudiobook platform as well as operations and infrastructure in Boulder, Colorado. NetLibrary eBook content and eAudiobook subscriptions will continue to be available on the NetLibrary platform. EBSCO plans to provide access to the NetLibrary eBook content on the EBSCOhost platform, one of the most used eContent platforms, creating a comprehensive integrated eBook and database service. NetLibrary eBooks will also continue to be discoverable through WorldCat.org.

Proceeds from the transaction will be invested directly back into the operations of the cooperative and into future service development for members.

OCLC also has signed agreements with EBSCO and H.W. Wilson to transition out of reselling selected FirstSearch databases. EBSCO has purchased the rights to license 15 vendor databases provided by OCLC through the FirstSearch service.

OCLC and H.W. Wilson will work together to transition library subscriptions for H.W. Wilson databases provided on the FirstSearch service to the WilsonWeb platform over the next 14 months. Wilson will continue to index many of its databases in WorldCat.org and WorldCat Local, a program that began in 2008.

More information

Scan a barcode, find a library

iPhone users can now download two updated applications that will scan a barcode on a book and find that book in a nearby library using data from WorldCat. Available through Apple’s iTunes apps store, the RedLaser and Pic2Shop apps use WorldCat APIs to deliver localized library results based on the user’s geolocation—providing library holdings, library location, contact and mapping information. RedLaser is available for U.S audiences for US $1.99, and Pic2Shop works worldwide as a free download.

View YouTube videos that demonstrate both apps

View news release about RedLaser

View news release about Pic2Shop

Integrating discovery and delivery

OCLC and Gale will index Gale’s flagship, full-text periodical databases in WorldCat Local to provide single-search access to users who subscribe to both services.

Gale’s Academic OneFile and General OneFile databases will be added to a central index to provide WorldCat Local users a direct link to the abstracts and articles in these popular, authoritative resources. The two databases contain some 100 million records each that connect to millions of full-text articles in both HTML and PDF from peer-reviewed journals, newspapers and magazines, as well as thousands of podcasts and transcripts.

The result is that Gale’s high-quality content, which is among the most popular in libraries, will be more visible to your users through WorldCat Local, and searchers no longer will need to log in to multiple interfaces or navigate numerous results sets to find and get to the information they need.

View news release

French records enrich WorldCat

With the completion of the batchloading of records from the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF), Système Universitaire de documentation (Sudoc) and the public library of Lyon, the French content in WorldCat has undergone a major increase.

There are now more than 16.3 million French-language records in WorldCat, and the percentage of French language records has also increased from 6.2 percent in 2007 to 9.6 percent in January 2010.

View news release

swissbib launches next-generation meta-catalogue

Users now have the ability to search 14 million titles from 740 libraries via a simple and intuitive interface. The catalogue was delivered one year after the initial contract was signed with OCLC and brings to a close the opening phase of the development: providing quick, easy and comprehensive access to the combined collections of swissbib libraries.

View news release

Maximizing the visibility, value of library collections

OCLC is adding records to WorldCat that represent digitized books from the Google Books Library Project and the HathiTrust Digital Library to provide greater access to and increased visibility of these rich, digitized collections. WorldCat searchers will be able to locate digitized books from these collections and link to the associated book landing pages, and in some cases access the full text of eBooks available through these significant initiatives. OCLC will add records for these collections on an ongoing basis.

OCLC is working with libraries, Google and the HathiTrust to derive new MARC records that represent these digital collections based on the rich collection of print records contributed to WorldCat by the OCLC membership over the last 40 years. Searchers will begin seeing these records in WorldCat immediately.

View news release

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