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Breeding, Marshall. OCLC advances library discoverability through Google Search. May 2022. Library Technology Newsletter. OCLC has recently expanded its efforts to enable discovery of library collection items through Google search. The organization has joined those partnering with Google, providing feeds and other data needed to enable individuals to borrow items from their local library through the knowledge panels displayed in search results for books. By expanding its partnership program with Google, OCLC now provides a new and more powerful way to facilitate the exposure for library collections on the web. This mechanism enables links directly to the item in the library's catalog from the initial page of a Google search. This capability is facilitated by structured data from WorldCat delivered to Google and the linking data in the WorldCat Registry.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC sues Clarivate over MetaDoor and its use of WorldCat records. Jun 2022. Library Technology Newsletter. OCLC filed a lawsuit against Clarivate and its subsidiaries demanding that Ex Libris cease promoting MetaDoor in a way that causes its member libraries to violate policies and contracts related to records in WorldCat. The complaint, filed on June 13, 2022, claims that Ex Libris is prompting OCLC members to share collection data that includes WorldCat records to MetaDoor in a way that violates OCLC policies and the terms of subscription contracts. OCLC asserts that MetaDoor takes unfair advantage of its long history of building WorldCat as a near-comprehensive bibliographic database. Further, OCLC states that Ex Libris offering MetaDoor as a free service is an anticompetitive strategy that endangers its very existence. This article presents the basic statements related to the complaint without opinion or commentary.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC Acquires Capira Technologies, Strengthening its Mobile Offerings. October 2020. Smart Libraries Newsletter. OCLC has acquired Capira Technologies, a small firm specializing in mobile apps for libraries. In a deal concluded on July 1, 2020, OCLC assumes responsibility for the company, including the development and support of its existing mobile apps. The four employees of Capira Technology also joined OCLC, including company founder Michael Berse.

Breeding, Marshall. Smarter Libraries Through Technology: 50 Years of Technology at OCLC. August 2017. Smart Libraries Newsletter. July 2017 marks fifty years since OCLC was founded as a pioneering organization to provide a new model of collaborative cataloging. OCLC has been a mainstay in the realm of cooperative services and in library technology. The history of OCLC has played out in terms of creating new services, expanding its reach through partnerships and acquisitions of other organizations, and evolving its products through new generations of technology. A detailed history of OCLC would consume volumes. In this issue of Smart Libraries Newsletter, we review some of the high points of the organization's evolution, focusing mostly on the technology trends behind its products and services.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC Acquires the Dutch ILS Provider HKA. November 2013. Smart Libraries Newsletter. OCLC has acquired Huijsmans en Kuijpers Automatisering BV (HKA), a vendor of library automation systems in the Netherlands. This acquisition further expands OCLC's already extensive involvement with cataloging and discovery services in the Netherlands. It also brings another for-profit ILS company into its organizational structure and brings a new set of products into its portfolio of technologies.

Huijsmans en Kuijpers Automatisering Background.

Breeding, Marshall. Innovative Interfaces Absorbs SkyRiver and Withdraws Lawsuit Against OCLC. April 2013. Smart Libraries Newsletter. In a major shift in strategy reflecting a more collaborative style of its new ownership and management, Innovative interfaces has withdrawn the lawsuit it filed against OCLC in July 2010. SkyRiver Technologies, the sister company and lead plaintiff of the suit, has been absorbed into Innovative Interfaces, which will integrate the SkyRiver cataloging service into its product offerings.

OCLC. OCLC Launches WorldShare Metadata Collection Management. November 1, 2012. . OCLC continues the expansion of new applications available on its new strategic WorldShare Platform with the release of WorldShare Metadata. WorldShare Metadata collection management joins other major applications that OCLC has developed on its new WorldShare Platform, including WorldShare Management Services, which offers functionality to displace a locally-installed integrated library system, and WorldShare License Manager, which provides tools for managing a library's subscriptions to electronic resources.

Breeding, Marshall. BIBSYS and OCLC Withdraw from Partnership. October 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. In previous issues of Smart Libraries Newsletter, we reported on the partnership for the BIBSYS consortium, comprising more than 100 research and special libraries in Norway to implement OCLC's WorldShare Management Services (WMS). The BIBSYS project has been presented by OCLC as an example of a large-scale project based on WMS that uses it as a foundation to support applications and services created by libraries and other third parties, as is the vision for the WorldShare Platform. OCLC and BIBSYS have recently announced that the project has been discontinued.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC Expands Opportunities for Sharing WorldCat Metadata. October 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. OCLC and Europeana have recently reached an agreement that would allow member libraries to contribute data to the Europeana.eu portal and remain within the WorldCat Rights and Responsibilities guidelines. Under this agreement, OCLC member libraries can contribute metadata derived from WorldCat using the Creative Commons Zero public domain license. Europeana and OCLC would then request that subsequent users of that contributed metadata give attribution to OCLC and the contributing institution.

Breeding, Marshall. Smarter Libraries through Technology: The OCLC Non-Event. July 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. The topic sparking the most buzz in library tech circles at ALA's Annual Conference was the unfortunate turn of events surrounding OCLC leadership. OCLC had named Jack Blount as its new President and Chief Executive Officer on June 8, 2012 and then rescinded the appointment with a subsequent and surprising announcement. A letter from Larry Alford, chair of the OCLC Board of Trustees, to the organization's membership dated June 20, 2012, gave the first public statement of this dramatic change of course. Jay Jordan will continue at the helm. The expected duration of Jordan's extended tenure as President and CEO of OCLC was not immediately announced as the organization defines a new executive selection process.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC Navigates the Realm of Open Linked Data. June 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. OCLC's stance on linked data and open data has become a key topic of interest for libraries. OCLC has been involved with the Semantic Web and linked data as research projects for several years. It has released open data licenses for some of its ancillary products. Where the massive WorldCat database, OCLC's prime strategic asset, fits into plans for open data remains a pressing concern for librarians. Through a series of actions, OCLC has demonstrated a progressively more open approach to the information assets under its stewardship.

Breeding, Marshall. OCLC Launches the WorldShare Brand and Wins an ARL Member. March 2012. Smart Libraries Newsletter. OCLC announced WorldShare License Manager based on the OCLC WorldShare Platform to offer a complete set of services to help libraries manage their subscriptions to electronic resources. This product makes use of the OCLC WorldCat knowledge base, which holds data describing the universe of specific holdings that can be accessed via the electronic resource packages available to libraries. Functionality offered by the WorldShare License Manager includes selection, acquisition, and management of electronic resources as well as link resolution. The application manages related to vendors, subscription details, license terms, and access restrictions.

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December 4, 2023. OCLC launches Arabic Discovery Catalog to increase discoverability, access to Arabic library collections. OCLC has introduced the Arabic Discovery Catalog, a new initiative that brings together bibliographic records from libraries located in Arab countries into one catalog to enhance the discoverability and visibility of these collections for international research. The Arabic Discovery Catalog currently includes records of more than 3.8 million Arabic resources and continues to grow, making it one of the most comprehensive bibliographic resources of Arabic culture. OCLC staff have indexed records in Arabic and taken steps to ensure that sorting and searching of results are accurately displayed to deliver an intuitive and seamless discovery experience using Arabic script. The Arabic Discovery Catalog is built on the WorldCat Discovery platform, the discovery solution developed by OCLC that makes it possible

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November 28, 2023. OCLC named Best Place to Work in IT by Computerworld. OCLC has been named the best place to work in IT among midsize global organizations on Computerworld's 2024 Best Places to Work in IT annual list. It is the second consecutive year that OCLC has been recognized as best in its class. With its staff of 1,200 worldwide, OCLC placed first in the category of midsize employers. OCLC, the leading library technology and research organization, has been named the best place to work in IT among midsize global organizations on Computerworld's 2024 Best Places to Work in IT annual list. It is the second consecutive year that OCLC has been recognized as best in its class. With its staff of 1,200 worldwide, OCLC placed first in the category of midsize employers.

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November 13, 2023. Ginny Steel elected Chair, Tim Robinson takes seat on OCLC Board of Trustees. Ginny Steel, the Norman and Armena Powell University Librarian, University of California, Los Angeles, has been elected Chair, and Tim Robinson, Chief Executive Officer of Nationwide Children's Hospital, took his seat on the OCLC Board of Trustees today during the Board's November meeting. Steel takes over for John Szabo, City Librarian, Los Angeles Public Library, who has served as Chair since 2017.

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September 29, 2023. Canberra Institute of Technology now live with OCLC's WorldShare Management Services. Canberra Institute of Technology, in Australia, has moved to OCLC's WorldShare Management Services as their library services platform to improve workflows, increase access to more resources for students and faculty, and join an ever-growing global network of collaborating libraries.

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September 7, 2023. OCLC awarded IMLS grant to support library learning in digital collections stewardship. OCLC has been awarded an IMLS Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program grant to support library learning in digital collections stewardship through a new on-demand course and facilitated group learning. OCLC's WebJunction will partner with five state libraries—Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, and Wyoming—to co-design and pilot training based on the Digital Collections Stewardship course series, using a facilitated peer-learning group model. This effort will support up to 200 staff at libraries, archives, and museums in creating, sharing, and stewarding digital collections. The project will also create a new course for WebJunction's Digital Collections Stewardship course series on how to build more diverse digital collections.

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September 4, 2023. WorldCat.org users can now purchase books from independent bookstores through Bookshop.org. WorldCat.org users can now purchase books from independent bookstores through Bookshop.orgOCLC / 30 August 2023logo: Bookshop.orgWorldCat.org now offers users the option to purchase books from independent brick and mortar bookstores across the US through Bookshop.org. Links to Bookshop.org display in the "Buy this item" section of item details on WorldCat.org search results for items available from Bookshop.org. This provides purchase options for people who would like to have their own copy of a book or cannot borrow it from favorite libraries.When users click to Bookshop.org from WorldCat.org, they can select a bookstore to receive the full profit from their book purchase. If no bookstore is selected, the purchase will contribute to a profit-sharing pool that helps all participating bookstores.OCLC plans to add Bookshop.org to "buy it now" links on the WorldCat Find mobile app in the coming months.

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August 25, 2023. Auckland Institute of Studies to improve workflows by moving to OCLC's WorldShare Management Services. Auckland Institute of Studies in New Zealand has selected OCLC's WorldShare Management Services as its new library management system to integrate workflows and increase visibility and access to more resources.

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August 18, 2023. NALIS of Trinidad and Tobago wins OCLC Award for Innovative Cooperation Initiatives in the Caribbean. The National Library and Information System of Trinidad and Tobago has been named winner of the 2023 OCLC Award for Innovative Cooperation Initiatives in the Caribbean for its work to create and promote co-located libraries along with a wide range of digital library services to underserved communities. NALIS' Co-located Library Project supports Trinidad and Tobago's efforts to realize the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

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August 14, 2023. Leveraging machine learning technology as part of ongoing WorldCat quality measures. OCLC Metadata Quality teams implement a variety of measures--both manual and automated--to improve the quality and usefulness of WorldCat data. These extensive and ongoing efforts ensure that WorldCat data supports the needs of our membership and our global network of thousands of libraries across a wide range of services. As the technologies and tools that allow us to do this important work evolve, we are continually exploring new methods for enriching, repairing, and de-duplicating WorldCat records--data that powers the global discovery and sharing of library resources.

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July 31, 2023. Comfenalco Antioquia Libraries to move to OCLCs WorldShare Management Services platform. Comfenalco Antioquia Libraries, in Medellin, Colombia, has selected OCLC's WorldShare Management Services as its new library services platform. Comfenalco Antioquia will be the first library in Colombia to implement WMS, scheduled to be live with the new platform later this year. Comfenalco Antioquia is a Family Compensation Fund that provides social programs and services in areas of housing, education, culture, libraries, recreation, sport, and tourism. The library comprises 13 physical facilities, including public and school libraries and reading rooms together with four technical areas: Reading Promotion, Library Content, Collection Development, and Local Information Service. The libraries reach more than 3 million users per year, with programs, services and more than 160,000 physical and digital resources. Comfenalco Antioquia Library is moving to WMS from OCLC's OLIB, the library management system they have used for more than 25 years.

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View All OCLC News Announcements

Jul 01, 2020 Capira Technologies becomes part of OCLC
Capira Technologies is now part of OCLC starting July 1, 2020.

May 31, 2019 Springshare acquires QuestionPoint from OCLC
OCLC has divested its QuestionPoint online reference service, selling the product to Springshare, a commercial company offering a variety of products, mostly focusing on public-facing library services delivered through a software-as-a-service platform. This product, officially branded as the Question- Point 24/7 Reference Cooperative, has been offered to libraries as a subscription service since 2002.

Jan 13, 2015 OCLC acquires Sustainable Collection Services
OCLC has acquired Sustainable Collection Services, the industry leader in helping libraries manage their print collections. OCLC maintains WorldCat, the largest aggregation of library data in the world, as well as the world's largest library resource sharing network. SCS is the leader in analyzing print collection data to help libraries manage and share their materials. SCS services leverage WorldCat data and analytics to show individual libraries and library consortia which titles should be kept locally, which can be discarded, and which are the best candidates for shared collections. All four SCS staff members will join OCLC as employees including its former executive director Rick Lugg.

Oct 01, 2013 OCLC acquires Huijsmans en Kuijpers Automatisering for $10,311,000
OCLC has acquired the shares of Huijsmans en Kuijpers Automatisering (HKA), a Dutch organization that develops, implements and manages systems for libraries, educational and cultural organizations. The addition of HKA, which offers the Wise line of library systems and services, enhances and extends OCLC services for libraries in the Netherlands. OCLC currently manages the infrastructure for interlibrary loan for many Dutch libraries and offers cataloging services through the GGC, the Dutch shared cataloging system, and the WorldCat global shared cataloging system. OCLC and HKA staff will now work together to accelerate the development and delivery of innovative services for libraries.

Dec 2012 Capira Technologies founded by Ted Gutmann, Robert Johnson, and Michael Berse
Capira Technologies founded by Michael Berse

Apr 18, 2011 OCLC acquires the assets of German library system provider, BOND GmbH for $5,915,400
OCLC acquires the assets of German library system provider, BOND GmbH and Co. KG. BOND, based in Böhl-Iggelheim, near Mannheim, is a leading integrated system provider for public libraries in German speaking countries. From the 2011 OCLC Annual Report: Effective April 15, 2011, OCLC EMEA B.V. acquired certain assets and related liabilities of B.O.N.D. GmbH & Co.KG (BOND), a German software development organization specializing in library management systems for 4,100,000 Euros ($5,915,400). The agreement allows for additional consideration of up to a maximum of 1,500,000 Euros that may be paid if BOND achieves predefined revenue targets during fiscal year 2012. The fair value of the contingency is deemed to be zero at June 30, 2011. The purchase was accounted for by the acquisition method of accounting. Assets acquired, primarily software of 4,823,600 Euros ($6,959,500) and liabilities assumed, primarily contract performance liabilities of 723,600 Euros ($1,044,100) were based on their fair values at the date of acquisition. BOND’s operations subsequent to the date of the sale are included in the consolidated financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2011, and its revenues for the two and a half months ended June 30, 2011, were $283,000.

Mar 17, 2010 OCLC sells NetLibrary to EBSCO Publishing for $7,867,200
From the 2009/10 OCLC Annual Report: On March 17, 2010, OCLC sold the assets of the NetLibrary Division (including the NetLibrary platform, operations and infrastructure in Boulder, Colorado) and the rights to license a select number of vendor-owned databases previously sold on the OCLC FirstSearch service to EBSCO Publishing for $7,867,200 and assumption of related liabilities. The transition services agreement between OCLC and EBSCO Publishing ($230,000 annually for an initial term of three years) ensures that all NetLibrary eBooks have been placed in a dark archive at OCLC and OCLC will continue to make OCLC- MARC records available for download by the relevant library for NetLibrary eBooks as well as providing library holdings synchronization. OCLC recognized a gain on the sale of $21,666,500.

Mar 17, 2010 EBSCO Publishing acquires the NetLibrary Division from OCLC
OCLC and EBSCO Publishing signed an agreement whereby EBSCO will purchase the assets of the OCLC NetLibrary Division and the rights to license a select number of vendor-owned databases currently available through the OCLC FirstSearch service. The purchase includes the NetLibrary eBook and eAudiobook platform as well as operations and infrastructure in Boulder, Colorado.

Aug 01, 2009 OCLC sells Preservation Service Center to Backstage Library Works
From the OCLC 2009/10 Annual Report: Effective August 1, 2009, OCLC sold the assets of its Preservation Service Center operation to Backstage Library Works, Inc. for $100,000 cash, $313,500 promissory note (paid in full on October 1, 2009), and a royalty of up to $1,750,000. The royalty agreement has a seven-year term and requires 4% of revenues above $300,000 per year, payable quarterly. The first $1,000,000 of royalty is secured by personal guarantee and a life insurance policy. The royalties above $1,000,000 will be recognized as payments are received. The building in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was purchased by Backstage Library Works, Inc. on November 2, 2009, for $1,400,000. OCLC recognized a total gain on the sale of $822,400 including the discounted guaranteed royalty receivable of $717,100.

Sep 12, 2008 OCLC acquires Amlib for $2,477,800 (US)

From the 2009 OCLC Annual report: Effective July 1, 2008, OCLC EMEA B.V. acquired certain assets and related liabilities of Amlib Pty. Ltd., (“Amlib”) the Australian software development organization specializing in library management solutions for 2,600,000 Australian dollars ($2,477,800). The purchase was accounted for by the purchase method of accounting. Assets acquired of 2,796,200 Australian dollars ($2,644,700) and liabilities assumed of 427,500 Australian dollars ($407,300) were based on their fair market values at the date of acquisition. Goodwill, representing the excess of cost over fair value of assets acquired of 231,300 Australian dollars ($220,400) was recorded and is included in fixed assets. Amlib’s operations subsequent to the date of the sale are included in the consolidated financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2009.

OCLC has acquired Amlib, the Australian software development organisation specialising in library management solutions. Amlib, based in Rowville and Perth, Australia, serves libraries in Australia, Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Amlib library management solution is particularly popular amongst school, public and special libraries, because of the combination of comprehensive functionality, high reliability and attractive pricing. It further complements the existing OCLC portfolio of integrated library management systems, a market where OCLC has established a strong presence in recent years. As a result of the acquisition, 11 Amlib staff members will become part of the OCLC Australia office, under the direction of Chris Thewlis.

Jan 11, 2008 OCLC acquires EZproxy from Useful Utilities for $600,000
From the 2009 OCLC Annual Report: Effective January 11, 2008, OCLC acquired certain assets and related liabilities of Useful Utilities, LLC, (“EZproxy”) the owner of the EZproxy software for $600,000. EZproxy provides libraries a solution for authenticating remote user access to licensed databases. The purchase was accounted for by the purchase method of accounting. Assets acquired of $600,000 and liabilities assumed of $395,400 were based on their fair market values at the date of acquisition. Goodwill, representing the excess of cost over fair value of assets acquired, of $395,400 was recorded and is included in fixed assets. EZproxy’s operations subsequent to the date of the sale are included in the consolidated financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2008.

Jan 01, 2008 OCLC EMEA B.V. sells its shares of Strata Preservation N.V. $331,000 to KMM Group
OCLC EMEA B.V. sold its shares of Strata Preservation N.V. for 225,000 Euros ($331,000) to KMM Group.

Jul 03, 2007 OCLC acquires remaining shares of OCLC PICA
Effective July 1, 2007 OCLC EMEA B.V. repurchased the outstanding shares from its minority shareholder Stitchting Pica effectively becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of OCLC for 10,272000 Euros or $13,903,200

Jan 19, 2007 Eric van Lubeek appointed Director of Operations and Services of OCLC PICA
van Lubeek was previously Managing Director of Infor Library Solutions.

Aug 14, 2006 OCLC acquires DiMeMa, Inc. for $3,912,200
From the 2006 OCLC Annual Report: On August 14, 2006, OCLC through OCLC Information Distribution, Inc., acquired DiMeMa, Inc., the organization that developed and supports CONTENTdm, for $3,912,200, which approximates the value of the software intangible.

Jul 01, 2006 OCLC acquires Research Libraries group
From the 2006 OCLC Annual Report: Effective July 1, 2006, OCLC combined operations with The Research Libraries Group, Inc. (“RLG”). The fair values of assets acquired with the transaction were approximately $2.8 million and liabilities assumed were approximately $7.1 million with goodwill expected to be approximately $4.3 million. that will be evaluated for impairment.

May 03, 2006 OCLC announces agreement to acquire Research Libraries Group

Jan 03, 2006 OCLC acquires Openly Informatics for $1,950,000
From the 2006 OCLC Annual Report: On January 1, 2006, OCLC acquired certain assets and related liabilities of Openly Informatics, Inc., a global knowledge base provider for $1,950,000.

Nov 03, 2005 OCLC PICA acquires Fretwell-Downing Informatics for $8,913,100
According to the 2006 OCLC Annual Report: FDI—On November 2, 2005, OCLC PICA B.V. purchased Fretwell-Downing Group, Ltd. and subsidiaries (“FDI”), a provider of digital library solutions, for 7,383,600 Euros ($8,913,100 at November 2, 2005).

Jun 27, 2005 OCLC PICA acquires Sisis Informationssysteme for $4,504,700
According to the OCLC 2006 Annual Report: SISIS—Effective July 1, 2005, OCLC PICA B.V. purchased library management systems provider Sisis Informationssysteme GmbH and subsidiary (“Sisis”) for 3,769,500 Euros ($4,504,700 at July 1, 2005).

May 27, 2005 OCLC PICA acquires a majority share in Strata Preservation in The Hague.
Strata Preservation specializes in high-end preservation services, for fragile and unique materials that cultural heritage institutions want to preserve and make more easily accessible to the public. Strata Preservation N.V. was established in 2002 as a joint venture of American-based OCLC Inc (60 %) and the Koninklijke Bibliotheek (40 %). OCLC PICA B.V., also a Dutch company and itself owned by OCLC Inc (60 %) and Stichting Pica (40 %), has now taken over the share that OCLC Inc had in Strata Preservation. On top of the synergy advantages mentioned earlier, this means that Strata Preservation can now be managed more directly in a time that national and international microfilming and digitization are expected to take off. Strata Preservation currently employs a staff of almost 20.

Aug 2004 OCLC absorbs 24/7 Reference Service from Metropolitan Cooperative Library System

Nov 12, 2003 OCLC acquires CAPCON
On June 17, 2003, the membership of CAPCON approved an agreement that enabled the nonprofit OCLC regional service provider to become the OCLC CAPCON Service Center. OCLC purchased CAPCON and created OCLC CAPCON, an OCLC-owned service center to offer education and support for all OCLC products and services. On November 12, the CAPCON Library Network officially became the OCLC CAPCON Service Center.

Apr 16, 2002 Rein van Charldorp appointed Managing Director of OCLC PICA

Apr 20, 2001 InfoVision Technology assumes support for Altarama Systems library management products
InfoVision Technology and Altarama Systems have concluded an agreement for InfoVision Technology to provide support for the Altarama library software products and a migration path for all Altarama customers (using Data*Library, VTLS or Virtua) to InfoVision's Windows based Amlib Library Management System.

Apr 1999 OCLC acquires 60 percent ownership of PICA BV for $8.7 million
OCLC acquires sixty-percent ownership of PICA, with forty percent retained by the Stichting Pica. From the 1999 OCLC Annual Report: "Effective December 23, 1999, OCLC acquired 35 percent equity interest in Pica B.V. for $5.4 million from the Pica Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Leiden, the Netherlands. Pica B.V. provides cataloging, interlibrary loan, local and end-user (reference) services to libraries in the Netherlands, France and Germany. Subsequently, on September 29, 2000, OCLC acquired an additional 25 percent of Pica B.V. shares for $3.3 million, bringing OCLC’s total share to 60 percent as prescribed in the agreement with Pica Foundation. For the six months ended June 30, 2000, Pica B.V. recorded revenues of $3.9 million and a positive result after taxes of $397,200. OCLC’s equity share is reflected in the condensed consolidated financial statements in “Other Income.” Pica B.V. complements the activities of OCLC Europe, the Middle East & Africa, based in Birmingham, England. Both organizations are self-supporting from revenues generated by system use in their regions."

1999 OCLC acquires Library Technical Services (LTS)
OCLC acquires the Winnipeg, Canada-based Library Technical Services (LTS). OCLC LTS provides original and copy cataloging as well as physical processing of materials for libraries.

Jan 1999 OCLC acquires WLN
OCLC Pacific merged with the Western Library Network (WLN) to form OCLC/WLN Pacific Northwest Service Center. This organization is now named OCLC Western.

May 11, 1998 Robert L. (Jay) Jordan becomes President and CEO of OCLC
The Board of Trustees of OCLC Online Computer Library Center has named Robert L. "Jay" Jordan as president and chief executive officer. Mr. Jordan, 55, a business executive, will become the fourth president in OCLC’s 31-year history in May 1998, succeeding K. Wayne Smith, who is stepping down after nearly 10 years. Mr. Jordan is currently president, new business development, Information Handling Services Group, Englewood, Colorado.

Oct 1997 OCLC acquires Blackwell North America's authority control service business

Jul 1997 OCLC sells Information Dimensions to Gores Technology Group.
IDI became part of OpenText in June 1998.

1997 Pica takes a majority share in new-founded company ALS International Limited
Pica has been able to consolidate its position on the market of local library systems by taking a majority share in the new-founded company ALS International Limited, established in Stevenage, England. A close co-operation between ALSI and Pica in the area of software development for local library systems will bear its fruit in the years to come. (Pica 1997 Annual Report http://develop.pica.nl:2002/content/1098/pdf/annualreport97.pdf)

Jun 1993 OCLC Acquires Information Dimensions, Inc., from Battelle Memorial Institute

Apr 1990 Ameritech acquires LS/2000 from OCLC
Ameritech acquires the rights to the library automation products of the OCLC Local Systems Division, including LS/2, LS/2000, ACQ-350, and SC350.

1985 OCLC acquires MetaMicro
OCLC acquired Metamicro, a microcomputer-based software product which later evolved into OCLCs SC350 serials control system

Aug 1983 OCLC acquires Avatar
OCLC acquires Avatar to assist in the development of LS/2000

Apr 1982 OCLC purchased Total Library System from The Claremont Colleges
Purchased Total Library System from The Claremont Colleges in California. HP/3000 based system.

Jul 06, 1967 Ohio College Library Center founded
The colleges and universities in the state of Ohio founded the Ohio College Library Center to create a computerized system for the libraries of Ohio academic institutions.

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2022 OCLC Accomplishments Narrative

The last two years ushered in changes that challenged routines and resolve. We’ve all witnessed digital transformation in many facets of how we live and work. We have adapted.

OCLC had been investing in new services, technology, and infrastructure before the COVID-19 pandemic acceleration started. That provided a head start to step up and meet the rapidly evolving needs of libraries through critically important research, training, and new services. OCLC has invested heavily in people, processes, and technology. Because of those investments, the organization was able to pivot, innovate at a faster pace than ever before, and help libraries advance when they were needed most to support their communities.

WorldCat

WorldCat is a remarkable achievement in global library collaboration. For more than 50 years, member libraries along with OCLC metadata experts have contributed, enhanced, and improved bibliographic data to connect cultural and scholarly resources in libraries worldwide.

OCLC partnered with hundreds of libraries to build the new WorldCat.org, the only site where anyone can explore billions of items from a global network of thousands of library locations in a single search. The redesigned WorldCat.org features an improved user experience, increases the impact of libraries on the web, and provides more ways to connect with people in the community and beyond.

OCLC completed the re-architecture of the WorldCat knowledge base. This multi-year project makes e-content more discoverable and immediately accessible to library users. A strong knowledge base is the foundation for managing e-resources, including continual expansion of available e-resources and fostering new approaches to collection management. At the end of the fiscal year, the WorldCat knowledge base included 22,786 collections from 661 providers, comprising 62,463,124 records—a 19 percent increase in collections and a 12 percent increase in records from the previous year.

OCLC launched a new streamlined holdings update service that helped improve 164 million holdings in WorldCat, adding 37 million new holdings, refreshing 94 million, and removing 38 million for items no longer held by libraries. Available at no additional charge for libraries with an OCLC cataloging subscription, the streamlined process helps libraries quickly update WorldCat holdings to ensure accurate representation of collections in OCLC services, such as FirstSearch, WorldCat Discovery, WorldShare ILL, Tipasa, and Connexion. Up-to-date holdings also ensures people can find items in library collections on WorldCat.org and through our partnerships with popular websites like Google, Wikipedia, and Goodreads.

Through a new program with Google, records of print books discovered through Google Search now link directly to library catalogs using WorldCat data. The program improves the visibility of library collections on the open web and will expand to more libraries and connect to more library resources in the future. OCLC is the largest provider of library data to Google and has worked with them for more than 14 years to increase access to information in libraries on the web. The initial phase of the new program gives access to 5.5 million books and 12 million editions from 565 member libraries.

Resource Sharing

More than 10,000 libraries in 56 countries used OCLC resource sharing services this year, processing 4.6 million interlibrary loan requests, an increase of 7 percent from last year. Much of this growth was due to the implementation of the library on-demand vision, which provides new smart fulfillment functionality that gets items to library users faster and saves library staff time.

Smart fulfillment makes fast, data-driven recommendations based on a library’s local policies, item availability, network relationships, and user needs. This year, OCLC added:

• Real-time availability for ILL significantly reduces the number of times libraries respond “No” and “In use, on loan.”
• Automated Request Manager enables libraries to save time by automating routine ILL workflows as well as configure smart lender strings, improving fill rates and turnaround times.

More than 1,000 libraries participated in the new Express digital delivery program that facilitates exceptionally fast ILL processing and cut the average turnaround time by 50 percent. During FY22, more than 455,000 copy requests were filled in an average of 10 hours among Express libraries, available at no extra cost to libraries with WorldShare ILL, Tipasa, and ILLiad. Many participating libraries regularly filled copy requests in less than one hour.

WorldShare Management Services

More than 780 libraries in 33 countries have now selected WorldShare Management Services (WMS), the world’s first cloud-based library services platform. New subscribers to WMS include:

• 27 libraries that are part of the Appalachian College Association
• Griffith University in Australia
• Complutense University of Madrid, one of the oldest universities in the world and among the top universities in Spain, extended its partnership with a five-year contract renewal of WMS.

• United States
  • Pace University and Pace University Law Library
  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  • University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
  • University of Sioux Falls
  • St. John’s University
  • US Army Corps of Engineers
• Canada
  • Providence University
  • Crandall University
• Latin America
  • National Library of Barbados
• Asia Pacific region
  • Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Central Bank of the Philippines)
  • Chaoyang University of Technology
• Europe
  • Bournemouth University
  • Newman University
  • University of Southampton
  • University of Suffolk
  • University of Milano-Bicocca

This year, more than 200 enhancements were added to WMS—more than 70 percent of which were based on community input.

WMS achieved U.S. StateRAMP ‘Ready’ authorization, the first in the library industry to do so, following a thorough evaluation to meet security requirements for cloud services at state and local levels of government.

OCLC partnered with Talis to offer Talis Aspire, a market-leading course resource list management system, to new and existing WMS customers. As a result of this new partnership, OCLC now offers Talis Aspire to WMS customers throughout the U.S., Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Australia, and New Zealand.

Choreo Insights

OCLC's new Choreo Insights library analytics solution was made available in 2022 to early adopter libraries in North America seeking to better align academic library collections with institutional focus areas, emerging curriculum priorities, and future trends.

Using WorldCat holdings data, Choreo Insights is a flexible solution that enables confident collection development decisions by comparing detailed subject breakdowns of local collections with overlap and gap analysis of any other library or group in WorldCat.

OCLC has been working closely with several libraries to develop, test, and refine Choreo Insights. These libraries are using Choreo Insights for a variety of projects and programs, including:

• Collection building Libraries can make cost-effective purchasing decisions by analyzing collection characteristics in a collective context of peer libraries.
• DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) Libraries are better able to analyze and address collection diversity issues.
• Academic program alignment Libraries can determine how well a collection supports emerging job market trends and key academic programs on campus.
• Collaboration Libraries can identify cost savings opportunities through collaboration with other libraries, typically in a group or consortia context.

Choreo Insights analysis can take only seconds to perform and is not limited to one-time reports and static snapshots. Libraries can try a variety of analysis scenarios, such as comparing institutions with programs they hold in high esteem, or trim results based on years of publication and other facets. Libraries can map collections directly to academic programs using CIP (Classification of Institutional Programs) mapping. They can also use Library of Congress classifications, FAST subject headings, simple title text searches, and more to see how collections stack up.

OCLC Wise

OCLC continues to work closely with Wise early adopters in the U.S. to add new features and functionality to enhance workflows for staff and the user experience for library customers. Bucks County Free Library, in Pennsylvania, went live with Wise this year.

To improve the online experience for its users, Roanoke Valley Libraries, in Virginia, which includes libraries in Botetourt County, City of Roanoke, City of Salem, and County of Roanoke, signed on to implement both Wise and CapiraMobile.

OCLC continued to expand Wise in Europe, as 58 libraries that are part of Cultuurconnect in Flanders, Belgium, went live. Currently, 268 Flanders public libraries and their users are now enjoying the benefits of Wise as their unified library system. In 2023, another 39 public libraries in Flanders will join the OCLC Wise family.

The Flanders Wise system is OCLC’s largest Wise implementation. The 315 libraries serve 6.8 million Flemish citizens with more than 28 million combined library holdings.

Mobile technology

Recognizing that effective community engagement for libraries requires an intuitive, powerful, and flexible mobile app, OCLC purchased Capira Technologies in 2020. Capira creates customized mobile apps, providing for an optimal user experience, including digital library cards, self-checkout, and more. CapiraMobile is the fastest-growing public library mobile app on the market. CapiraCurbside enables contactless, easy curbside delivery for library staff and customers—which has been a critical service for many libraries to continue services in the COVID-19 environment.

OCLC welcomed 88 new additions to the Capira family this year, and the entire suite of Capira library services were recognized with LibraryWorks 2022 Modern Library Awards.

OCLC EZproxy

The customer base of hosted EZproxy grew approximately 37 percent in 2022. In EMEA and APAC, there were more than 300 libraries that either migrated to or subscribed for the first time to hosted EZproxy.

By the end of the year, 85 libraries around the world were using EZproxy Analytics. In APAC, six institutions successfully implemented Analytics—Keio University, Waseda University, Temasek Polytechnic, University of Philippines Diliman College of Engineering, Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation, and Singapore Management University. These customers use EZproxy Analytics to gain a deeper understanding of who’s interacting with their services; justify e-resource investments; and inform decisions about renewals, cancellations, and acquisitions.

WorldCat Discovery

Searching in WorldCat Discovery increased 39 percent in FY22, with users averaging 424 million searches per month. It enables users to identify and obtain resources in a wide variety of formats and collections, and innovative search tools provide results without bias toward any content providers. New features and functionality added in FY22 include:

• Release of a redesigned, WCAG 2.1-compliant WorldCat Discovery interface that delivers an enriched user experience for all searchers, reflecting input from the WorldCat Discovery community
• The ability for searchers to view, save, rerun, share, or delete recent searches in their personal search history
• New search history configuration options that include custom text for the “Save” search action, and the ability to view search history for current session and automatically add most recent searches to “My Account” on sign-in
• A “Best access options” panel that uses libraries’ fulfillment inputs to show the most convenient electronic and physical fulfillment choices to users, so they can obtain needed items as quickly as possible
• An Arabic interface display option
• A 45 percent improvement in the user interface response time

Open Access

OCLC added more open access collections from 15 providers, including four new organizations—Europeana, Open Library of the Humanities, UCL Press, and Wolters Kluwer—to the Open Access Content database on FirstSearch. Searches of the Open Access Content database retrieve only open access items, saving time for searchers who wish to focus their research on resources from open access sources. “Access” links in FirstSearch records connect users to full-text open content. The Open Access Content database expands on OCLC’s 20-year history of partnering with the world’s leading content providers to represent high-quality open content in WorldCat and OCLC services.

Publisher agreements

OCLC signs agreements with publishers to ensure better discovery and more complete access to materials library users need. OCLC added 43 new collections from 17 content providers (seven new providers) to the WorldCat Discovery central index to ensure discovery of their content through WorldCat Discovery. At the end of FY22, OCLC had agreements with 384 publishers and information providers to include metadata for 3,150 collections of books, e-books, journals, databases, and other materials from these global publishers to the central index, representing more than 4.7 billion records.

OCLC GreenGlass

Use of GreenGlass continued to expand globally. More than 560 projects having been conducted to date by individual libraries and groups to inform a variety of print collection management decisions. New customers include University of Minnesota (US), Senate House Library (UK), and the Federal Science Libraries Network (Canada).

The number of shared print commitments registered in WorldCat grew to more than 25 million. This demonstrates the strength in OCLC’s partnership with the shared print community. GreenGlass for Serials added support for print to e-serials comparisons, allowing libraries to deduplicate print serial runs using information about their electronic holdings.

Linked Data

OCLC completed a project, funded in part by a grant from the Mellon Foundation, to develop a shared entity management infrastructure that supports linked data initiatives in the library community. As a result, OCLC released more than 150 million WorldCat Entities containing descriptions of creative works and persons on a freely available look-up site at entities.oclc.org. OCLC is now partnering with key libraries to help refine and enhance an entities management tool and APIs. That will give libraries what they need to fully incorporate linked data into their workflows.

OCLC Research

OCLC Research continued to guide the community with critical analysis and recommendations.

• OCLC Research published Reimagine Descriptive Workflows: A Community-informed Agenda for Reparative and Inclusive Descriptive Practice. The report synthesized findings from the Reimagine Descriptive Workflows project, related research, and ongoing operational work for improving descriptive practices, tools, infrastructure, and workflows in libraries and archives. It contextualizes the challenges facing the library and information field in inclusive and reparative metadata work and offers a framework of guidance with actions to help institutions with prioritization and change.
• In partnership with Washington State University’s Center for Digital Scholarship and Curation, OCLC is creating a series of free, online courses for staff at tribal archives, libraries, museums, and small public libraries on digital stewardship and community-centered curation of digital collections. The first of these on-demand courses, adapted from the Tribal Digital Stewardship Cohort Program developed at Washington State University, were introduced in FY22 and 225 learners enrolled in them. These courses will help users create digital collections to raise the visibility of the richness and diversity of these cultures.
• OCLC continued to build diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) courses in the WebJunction course catalog. More than 3,000 people enrolled in the 22 courses. And 2,789 learners attended one of the 13 live DEI webinars that WebJunction offered during FY22. Two of the most popular webinars were On Implicit Bias and Communication and Promote Community Engagement and Challenge Prejudice with a Human Library.
• As libraries were forced to close their doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic, OCLC knew that they would need science-based information for reopening. OCLC’s work on the REALM project with The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and Battelle produced research on how materials could be safely handled and returned back into circulation. REALM completed laboratory tests that studied the lifespan of the virus on materials that are prevalent in libraries, archives, and museums, synthesized emerging research findings, and produced toolkit resources to inform local decision making.

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