OCLC to Pilot WorldCat Local

New service brings together local
discovery, delivery within global network

DUBLIN, Ohio, April 11, 2007-OCLC is piloting a new service that will
allow libraries to combine the cooperative power of OCLC member
libraries worldwide with the ability to customize WorldCat.org as a
solution for local discovery and delivery services.

The WorldCat Local pilot builds on WorldCat.org, which allows Web access
to the world's richest database for discovery of materials held in
libraries.  Through a locally branded interface, the service will
provide libraries the ability to search the entire WorldCat database and
present results beginning with items most accessible to the patron.
These might include collections from the home library, collections
shared in a consortium, and open access collections.

WorldCat Local will offer the same feature set as WorldCat.org, such as
a single search box, relevancy ranking of search results, result sets
that bring multiple versions of a work together under one record,
faceted browse capability, citation formatting options, cover art and
additional evaluative content.

The WorldCat Local service interoperates with locally maintained
services like circulation, resource sharing and resolution to full text
to create a seamless experience for the end user.  WorldCat Local will
also include future enhancements to WorldCat.org including more than 30
million article citations, and social networking services.

"WorldCat Local offers OCLC member institutions a way to leverage the
ongoing investments that OCLC is making in WorldCat.org, within their
local environment," said Chip Nilges, OCLC Vice President, Business
Development.  "As we add new features to WorldCat.org-and as OCLC member
libraries add new content to WorldCat-those features and that content
will also become available within WorldCat Local."

The WorldCat Local pilot will test new functionality that allows users
to place requests, gain online access, or request an interlibrary loan
within WorldCat.org.

Libraries and groups participating in the WorldCat Local pilot include:

*        University of Washington

*        Peninsula Library System in California

*        Libraries in Illinois, including:

o       University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign

o       Glenside Public Library District

o       CCS (Cooperative Computer Services) Consortium

o       Lincoln Library

o       Illinois State Museum

o       Illinois State Library

o       Hoopeston Public Library

o       Northeastern Illinois University

o       Mattoon Public Library

o       Champaign Central High School

o       Williamsville Senior High School

The University of Washington Libraries will be first to pilot WorldCat
Local with OCLC in April.  Other institutions will follow.  OCLC will
examine results of the pilot to determine a production schedule.

Bill Jordan, Associate Dean of University Libraries, University of
Washington, said the University of Washington Libraries "has purchased
or licensed an amazing number of high-quality information resources for
our users, but we've hidden them in multiple silos with little or no
integration between them.  Our job is to take those quality resources
and make them convenient for the user to find and use-to make quality
convenient.  WorldCat Local appeals to me as a platform that I can use
to address those strategic concerns."

"With WorldCat Local, we get enhanced search and display capabilities
like faceted browse, FRBR-ized results sets, and enhanced content like
reviews and article metadata," said Mr. Jordan.  "We bring together all
our fulfillment options-electronic, locally held, consortial, and
remote-into one interface that still leverages all the 'delivery smarts'
that are built into our local and consortial systems.  With the addition
of article metadata, we begin to see the breakdown of our discovery
silos by the aggregation of indexing for book and article content."

"Finally, WorldCat Local provides a syndication platform so that we can
meet users at their point of need," said Mr. Jordan.  "We have to
complete the discovery-to-delivery chain no matter where the user starts
out.  It's here, in syndication, that OCLC is uniquely positioned to
work with Microsoft, Yahoo! and Google on behalf of libraries in a way
that nobody else really can."

OCLC will test interoperability with systems used by participating pilot
libraries, including Innovative Interfaces, SirsiDynix, and ExLibris
Voyager.

About OCLC

Founded in 1967 and headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, OCLC Online Computer
Library Center is a nonprofit library service and research organization
that has provided computer-based cataloging, reference, resource
sharing, eContent and preservation services to 57,000 libraries in 112
countries and territories.  OCLC and its member libraries worldwide have
created and maintain WorldCat, the world's richest online resource for
finding library materials.  For more information, visit www.oclc.org.

 

OCLC, WorldCat and WorldCat.org are trademarks and/or service marks
of OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc.

Third-party product, service and business names are trademarks and/or
service marks of their respective owners.

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