Extending the Cooperative:
OCLC's New Global Service Strategy

Many of you may have seen references to OCLC's new global strategy and may be wondering what it means for your library's use of OCLC services. According to OCLC management, the new strategy "identifies new directions to extend the library cooperative and provides services and programs around the world" so that OCLC remains a vital organization that continues to meet its members' needs.

Over the next few years, OCLC will transform WorldCat, one of the largest bibliographic databases around, "into a globally networked, Web-based information resource of text, graphics, sound and motion," according to Jay Jordan, OCLC president and CEO. In addition to descriptions of library holdings, WorldCat users will find links to digital objects in repositories, such as museums and archives.

One of the first steps will be to move WorldCat from the proprietary database software where it currently resides to commercially available database software. This change will make it easier to expand the use of WorldCat and to integrate new information technologies as they become available. Relying on open systems architecture and adhering to technical standards will help OCLC exploit these latest technologies.

In technical services (i.e., cataloging), new tools are being developed that are designed to improve cataloging productivity. In addition to the MARC format, other metadata formats, such as the Dublin Core, will be supported. Technical services staff will be able to take advantage of new automated tools to capture, deliver, link and maintain metadata. Current OCLC cataloging interfaces will be merged into a single, browser-based entry point called the Integrated Metadata Desktop. OCLC's already-available CORC platform will be the foundation of these new metadata services.

OCLC has a new Web page that provides information on the new cataloging and metadata services migration time line. A visit to this Web page at www.oclc.org/strategy/cataloging/ will answer questions such as:

• When will OCLC Passport for Cataloging be replaced by a new interface?
• When will the new interface to OCLC Cataloging & Metadata Services be ready?
• Will macros be supported by the new interface?

The Web page has a "Guide to migration" brochure, a frequently-asked-questions section and more. The page is updated as new information becomes available, and you can use its NetMind feature to be notified of updates when they are posted.

Reference and resource sharing services also will be evolving. Because OCLC plans to enhance WorldCat to include more than a bibliographic description of an item, users will be given a range of order and delivery options, including online viewing, online purchasing and interlibrary loan. Users also will be able to view reviews, previews, full text and images. OCLC hopes to use these services to help build the library brand, enabling users to move easily between the library and the Web.

To read more about OCLC's new strategy, take a look at "Extending the OCLC Cooperative: A Three-Year Strategy," available online at www.oclc.org/strategy. More information will be published in Action for Libraries as it becomes available.

BCR/OCLC Update sessions will also be held at various locations throughout the BCR region to provide more detailed information on new OCLC services. These sessions are free, but preregistration is required. Watch BCR's Web site for information on dates and locations.

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February 27, 2008
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