Lynne Brindley, Chief Executive of the British Library, writes that a national digital research collection is essential for the UK’s future innovation and economic growth.
Most people are aware that a national switch to digital broadcasting is expected by the end of this decade. Rather less well known is the fact that a similar trend is underway in the world of publishing: a study by EPS, commissioned by the British Library, projects that, by the year 2020, 40% of UK research monographs will be available in electronic format only, while a further 50% will be produced in both print and digital. A mere 10% of new titles will be available in print alone by 2020.
This is a seismic shift, and one that we – and our partners in the publishing and information industries – need to prepare for in order to maintain Britain’s competitiveness across all sectors, from business to the arts, from science to education and culture.
The role of the Web
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For the British Library, the challenges of the digital age are particularly acute
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Libraries have traditionally existed to collect and organise information, make access to knowledge more democratic, and preserve the record of ideas for future generations. Now, information is ubiquitous: eight billion web pages are just a keystroke away. Their content mutates constantly, and is subject to no structure. Google and other search engines have revolutionised the way people expect to access information. How do we redefine the role of the library in such a rapidly changing context?
The challenges for libraries in the digital age are particularly acute for the British Library, which has achieved its reputation because of the scale and scope of its collection, its celebrated Reading Rooms, and its international Document Supply services. Clearly, we'll continue to collect print, manuscripts and other traditional material on a large scale. However, in today's world that is not sufficient: there are new challenges we must address.
Diverse audiences, changing needs
We serve a broad range of audiences with researchers, businesses, education, the general public and the library network all benefiting from our services and collection. In setting our recently-announced strategy for 2005–2008, our first step was to speak directly to our main users – people who are doing research for academic, personal or commercial purposes – and the organisations and institutions that support and benefit from their work. We also assessed the technological, economic and social pressures that we anticipate will have an impact on their way of working and on ours.
Throughout our review, the key factor driving change was the impact of the web and Internet technologies. The increased take-up of the Internet across society and the importance of e-service provision have been reflected in an accelerated migration of services to the web over the past five years. That trend will continue, and we'll extend our own web services and resources, making them as easy to use as possible. Our collection offers something for everyone, and we’ll continue to develop new ways to support learning and personal enrichment as well as research.
A digital British Library?
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To fulfil our goals we need the same foresight and determination that the Library's founders showed
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In light of these technological developments, the UK needs to develop a digital research information infrastructure. This infrastructure, including content, hardware and applications, is necessary to support the research process within a digital environment. The British Library has an important role to play, and we are collaborating with others to assess the scope of what’s needed. It's vital that we work together to develop a sustainable framework with consistent standards that will meet the needs of researchers both today and in the future.
Developing strategy is a continuous process and there are always further questions to consider. Over the next year we'll be taking forward important work on our collection development and expertise strategies. We'll also be refining our cultural and international strategies and our approach to the Home Countries and English Regions. We're working with libraries in this country and overseas to provide leadership and to sustain the British Library as a great national library.
To fulfil our goals we need the same foresight and determination that the Library's founders had when they brought together the original collections in 1753 to be 'preserved therein for publick use, to all posterity', providing access to the world's knowledge for 'all studious and curious persons'.
For more about the British Library visit its website at www.bl.uk