Slides for the report on the workshop session on “Providing information to third parties” (C2) at the IWMW 2001 event held at Queen's University Belfast on 25-27 June 2001. See http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/webmaster-2001/sessions.html#c2

1. Providing Information
To Third Parties:
Report
Brian Kelly
UKOLN is supported by:
Pres
Report

2. 2
Background
We need to provide information to third parties:
• Other HE and related bodies (e.g. UCAS, HERO,
…)
• Commercial bodies which may help to promote
our institution
But:
• It can be time-consuming to provide information
to lost of groups
• Possibly we should be selling our information
• Some portal Web sites may reflect badly on our
organisation and we may wish to stop them using
our information

3. 3
A Better Way Of Doing It
Manually providing information (e.g. emailing content,
uploading individual records to a Web form, etc.) has
limitations:
• Duplication of work within organisation
• Difficult to maintain the distributed information
• Not scaleable solution
We should consider generating information from
single master source:
• Export to XML file for bulk submission to 3rd
party
(cf HERO)

4. 4
Policy Issues
Responding to individual requests:
• Likely to result in variations of policy over time
and from different people
Should we develop an institutional policy covering
relationships with 3rd
parties:
• Effort we’ll expend on providing information to
legitimate bodies
• Selling information
• Chasing misuse of our information
• Relationships with others in HE/FE community
(e.g. “Oxbridge – better than Camford”
metadata)

5. 5
Conclusions
Conclusions:
• An interesting area
• Some institutions already have policies
and procedures, but others don’t
• Worth pursuing some more –
“Work towards institutional / national policy on
information provision reqts.”
• There was also interest in data protection
and IPR issues – but no time to discuss
NOTE Workshop materials available from IWMW workshop
web site at <http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/
events/workshops/webmaster-2001/>
NOTE Workshop materials available from IWMW workshop
web site at <http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/
events/workshops/webmaster-2001/>

6. 6
Comments
“Keep more of an eye on ‘unauthorised’ sites”
“… also nice to meet & talk to someone from
HERO”
“Wasn’t long enough! Lots of interesting
issues not covered”
“Needs to be longer” – comment by several
participants

7. 6
Comments
“Keep more of an eye on ‘unauthorised’ sites”
“… also nice to meet & talk to someone from
HERO”
“Wasn’t long enough! Lots of interesting
issues not covered”
“Needs to be longer” – comment by several
participants