Smarter Libraries through Technology
“The Joint Library System has entirely disrupted the vendor landscape in Denmark, illustrating the winner-take-all impact of the recent trend toward widely-shared resource management platforms”
What the media said18 June 2018
Article by Marshall Breeding. The article was published in the June 2018 issue of Smart Libraries Newsletter, published by ALA TechSource.
One of the most prevalent trends in the current phase of the library technology industry has been increased movement toward shared technology platforms to help libraries increase the impact of their collections through cooperation. Sharing technical infrastructure removes many barriers that inhibit cooperation. Shared systems expand the universe of materials available to users and reduce the complexity of ful¬filling requests across the participating institutions.
This article features the Joint Library System in Denmark, which ranks as the largest implementation of shared technical infrastructure for a library consortium globally. I have not been able to identify any other system larger than the 2,428 public and school libraries participating in the Danish Joint Library System.
This impressive initiative includes the development of Cicero, a new library management system, and the migration of all the public and school libraries from their incumbent systems to a new shared bibliographic and technical infrastructure. With this move, Denmark has realized a major milestone in its national infrastructure for its libraries, providing library management, bibliographic services, and resource sharing for all of its public and school libraries.
The Joint Library System has entirely disrupted the vendor landscape in Denmark, illustrating the winner-take-all impact of the recent trend toward widely-shared resource management platforms
Marshall Breeding concludes, that Systematic will be an interesting company to watch as it further develops Cicero and looks to a broader market for the products of its library and learning division.
