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ISBN and digital publications

ISBN and digital publications. Brian Green International ISBN Agency. ISBN and different formats. Under “Rules of assignment”, the 2005 revision of the ISBN standard (ISO 2108) says:

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ISBN and digital publications

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  1. ISBN and digital publications Brian Green International ISBN Agency

  2. ISBN and different formats • Under “Rules of assignment”, the 2005 revision of the ISBN standard (ISO 2108) says: • Different product forms (e.g. hardcover, paperback, Braille, audio-book, video, online electronic publication) shall be assigned separate ISBNs • Each different format of an electronic publication (e.g. ‘.lit’, ‘.pdf’, ‘.html’, ‘.pdb’) that is published and made separately available shall be given a separate ISBN.

  3. Why identify different formats? • e-commerce systems require ISBNs • Bibliographic databases require ISBNs • Detailed sales/usage reporting requires ISBNS • At the time of the ISBN revision, identification by file format seemed adequate. We thought that the e-book supply chain would be similar to print books. Not so!

  4. The changing ebook supply chain • For printed books, publishers assign ISBNs to each format and that ISBN remains constant throughout the supply chain • For ebooks, many publishers only produce a single generic file format (e.g. “.epub”), and intermediaries add technical rights protection (DRM) and may make different versions with different user functionality • Other players in the supply chain need to be able to identify these different versions (e.g. for discovery, EDI, usage reporting) • But not all publishers provide ISBNs for them

  5. Traditional book supply chain ISBN “X” Publisher / distributor ISBN “X” ISBN “X” Library jobbers Wholesalers ISBN “X” ISBN “X” Libraries Booksellers Readers

  6. E-book supply chain (current mess) Epub file ISBN “A” Publisher Epubfile+DRM (diff. proprietary) Other formats Epubfile+DRM (proprietary) Other formats E-book aggregator / manager E-book aggregator /manager ISBN “A” for all formats Proprietary identifier Library jobbers Wholesalers ISBN “A” + metadata Own ISBN-like identifiers Libraries Booksellers Readers

  7. E-book supply chain (by the rules) Epub file ISBN “A” Publisher Epubfile+DRM (diff. proprietary) Other formats Epubfile+DRM (proprietary) Other formats E-book aggregator / manager E-book aggregator /manager ISBN “D”, “E“ ISBN “B”, “C” Library jobbers Wholesalers Libraries Booksellers Readers

  8. Why don’t some publishers want to assign ISBNs to each version? • Some of their arguments: • “We can’t manage the metadata bloat involved” • “Our sales channels (e.g. Amazon) do not require standard identifiers for ebooks as customers will find them through their preferred vendor” • “ISBNs are too expensive for us to assign to each format” • “We only “publish” one generic format (e.g. .epub) and assign an ISBN to that” • “We are not responsible for formats provided by third part intermediaries”

  9. New ISBN rule introduced in 2008 • Since some publishers do not provide separate ISBNs for each version and some customers, especially libraries, need unique identification of products from different platforms with different functionality… • If a publisher does not identify each format with a separate ISBN, re-sellers may do so on their behalf • Not ideal but a necessary compromise until publishers assign their own ISBNs • Requires central bibliographic agency to collect and list ISBNs and related metadata

  10. What do you believe is the biggest barrier to assigning ISBNs to digital products? Results gathered during a live BISG participant poll.

  11. Why and when do we need standard identifiers? • Standard identifiers are essential when there is a need to communicate across a supply chain, e.g. for purposes of e-commerce, aggregating information, reporting sales or usage. • This was precisely the reason for introducing the ISBN standard (ISO 2108) in 1970 and the reason that it has been so successful in enabling trade developments • Do we want to risk losing all that with digital products?

  12. Requirements now being researched by International ISBN Agency • At what level of granularity are standard identifiers required? • Generic file (e.g. epub)? • Format (e.g. pdf)? • Platform (e.g. ebrary)? • By whom? • For what functions? • Who should assign them? • What are the barriers? • Please let us know if you have a view, now or to • info@isbn-international.org

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