OCLC, the library technology and research organisation that changed the way libraries work, is celebrating 50 years of innovation and collaboration with libraries around the world.
On July 6, 1967, the non-profit Ohio College Library Center was established to create a shared electronic library for Ohio colleges and universities. Frederick Kilgour, founder and first President, had a plan to build a shared, online cataloging system that would effectively merge library catalogues through a computer network and database so that libraries could work collaboratively, save time and share resources.
What began 50 years ago as a regional computer system for 54 Ohio colleges has become OCLC, a global library cooperative that provides shared technology services, original research and community programs to over 16,000 libraries in 120 countries.
Thousands of libraries around the world use OCLC services to locate, acquire, catalogue, lend, preserve and manage library materials and collections. Researchers, students, faculty, scholars, professional librarians and other information seekers use OCLC services to obtain bibliographic, abstract and full-text information.
The OCLC Online Union Catalog began operation in 1971. Catalogers at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, were first to catalogue a book using the online cataloguing system. That database, now known as WorldCat, is the world's most comprehensive database of information about library collections. Today, WorldCat comprises more than 396 million records representing more than 2.5 billion titles in libraries worldwide.
Libraries cooperatively contribute, enhance and share bibliographic data through WorldCat, connecting people to cultural and scholarly resources in libraries worldwide. OCLC's technology and team of expert cataloguers and data quality specialists constantly enrich WorldCat records with new and corrected information to ensure that WorldCat contains the highest quality records possible. Data shared through WorldCat supports a variety of network services and spurs innovation.
OCLC also shares original research with the library world. OCLC Research is one of the world's leading centers devoted exclusively to the challenges facing libraries and archives in a rapidly changing information technology environment. Its WebJunction program is an online community where library staff gather to build the knowledge, skills and support needed to help libraries thrive.
Governance of the cooperative is unique. OCLC Regional Councils - Americas; Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA); and Asia Pacific - determine their own leadership structures, programs and priorities. Regional Councils elect representatives to serve on the OCLC Global Council, which is responsible to elect members to the OCLC Board of Trustees. Of OCLC's current board of 14 trustees, 10 are librarians.
Together with libraries, OCLC continues to innovate and grow.
Brought to you by Scope e-Knowledge Center, a world-leading provider of metadata services, abstraction, indexing, entity extraction and knowledge organisation models (Taxonomies, Thesauri and Ontologies).
