National Diet Library Newsletter
|
Cooperation to enrich digital
library contents
Ms. Soo-Eun Lee
Report
for the 6th mutual visit program of
|
| After the Korean government drew up the comprehensive plan for promoting
computerization of libraries in 2002, digital reading rooms started to
be established in public libraries. However, absolute lack in the
purchasing budget of public libraries blocks the expansion of digital information
resources. To meet this problem, the NLK started the following two
projects: one is purchasing online publications and providing them to public
libraries; the other is cooperative purchase of offline digital publications.
Purchase and provision of online publications It is very hard to grasp the state of rapidly-increasing digital publications and decide what to buy, so the NLK has made companies propose publications to be purchased by the library. The purchasing staff of 15 representative local libraries evaluated some 12,000 items, of which 659 titles were purchased in 2000 and 2001. In 2002, the NLK plans to buy 2,300 titles. They consist of 30 % academic journals, 30% literature and 40 % information material on Korean studies. The data and the metadata of each company are transported to the NLK server, and public libraries access them on the web page of the "National Digital Library". Two hundred and thirty libraries that are equipped with digital reading rooms and libraries that will establish digital reading rooms in future are qualified to use such resources. To share resources among many public libraries, the purchasing price of academic journals is set at 5.7 times as high as the market price. Information material on Korean studies is 10 times and e-Book 47 times as high as the market price. One to two billion Korean won are spent each year. Future challenges include the maintenance, development and security of an integrated viewer, awareness raising and adequate handling of digital transmission rights and encouragement to use these materials. Offline digital publications In 2002, a consortium of public libraries hosted by the NLK started. The aim of the consortium is collaborative purchase of offline digital resources, such as CD-ROM, DVD and videotapes. Because it is difficult for individual libraries to negotiate on the materials, the consortium set some conditions beforehand (e.g. educational materials in and out of Korea, foreign materials with some kind of hangul display, and relatively expensive Korean materials) and made the producing companies propose 120 candidate materials. Representatives of public libraries examined the materials and 33 libraries applied for 54 items. The NLK negotiated with the companies over purchasing conditions and each library made agreements. Future challenges include clarification of the selection and purchase policy, national financial support for small public libraries, development of an integrated administrative system on the web and forming of a cyber community for collaborative purchase. |
 |