NEWS RELEASE
Talis unveils new technology platform and new business model for Union
Catalogues, Resource Discovery and Resource Sharing
Talis Source is the first application of this new platform
20th March 2006: Talis has a rich heritage in providing union catalogues
for shared cataloguing, resource discovery and resource sharing since its
formation in 1969. In that time we have been through many technology
transitions. In 2005 we funded a review of resource discovery and resource
sharing in the UK and announced that we would not seek to renew our
contract to provide UnityWeb in conjunction with The Combined Regions.
Instead we are pursuing a more visionary, inclusive, and longer term
strategy to create a next generation software platform that will deliver
many new benefits to all libraries, their users and the wider public over
the next decade.
The use of modern, scalable and reusable software components, allows us to
significantly reduce costs for our customers whilst also providing a
platform for others to build applications, such as regional and national
catalogues, services directories, and more. This 'next generation'
approach changes the economics and landscape for shared catalogues and
applications such as resource discovery and interlending.
As a direct result we will be offering our service, to be called Talis
Source, in two forms. It will be FREE to use for those making data
contributions to the platform, with FREE discovery for any library wishing
to locate items. A simple £500 per annum charge is applicable for those
using the interlending features of Talis Source.
The Talis Library platform enables us to manage a large scale directory of
collection descriptions, to harvest many forms of metadata from libraries,
and then to efficiently aggregate, search, and enrich such data. We
provide Web Service interfaces through our development partners to enable
others to improve their existing applications and to build new and
innovative solutions.
In his new role as Head of Library Policy at MLA, John Dolan stated “The
Talis development represents the right direction of travel for libraries
in the immediate future - overcoming historic barriers and bringing
resources nearer to the people who need them. Learners operate now on a
global stage and libraries are learning that global reach and instant
access to resources is essential for cultural and economic impact.”
Andrew Green, the Librarian at the National Library of Wales,
commented “The National Library of Wales has taken the decision to co-
operate in this venture by contributing data to make its holdings
available within Talis Source. We clearly see the benefits of providing
our data to a platform on which others can build applications."
Professor Derek Law, Director of Information Resources at the University
of Strathclyde, and Associate for Digital Library Research, added, "I
welcome this new initiative. The community has had to labour too long with
unnecessary restrictions on data. This platform approach is a valuable
step in unlocking the latent power in libraries"
Dave Errington, CEO of Talis, “This is the result of 2 years of intensive
technology and market research. A platform approach has significant
impacts for the Library domain and is our contribution to improving the
services that our customers offer and end users demand. Furthermore, we
think that charging libraries to contribute and then view their data is
now unfair, unnecessary and untenable. We look forward to working with the
whole UK academic and public library community to deliver a wide range of
existing and new services that ultimately benefit us all”
For more information on Talis Source and the background to these
announcements please visit: www.talis.com/source
For further information, please contact:
Ceri McCall, Senior Manager, Corporate Marketing
T: +44 (0) 870 400 5029
E: [log in to unmask]
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