The Danish Digital Library project aims to create a joint digital solution for all Danish municipal libraries and other library sectors. It will provide a consolidated infrastructure for the presentation and access to digital materials. The solution is based on an evaluation of the existing Ting project, which uses an open source, modular and service-oriented architecture. Implementation will be coordinated between the Ministry of Culture and local governments, with the goal of covering 80-90% of the Danish population within three years through voluntary municipal membership. Related initiatives include a national library system tender and expanding e-book services.

1. The Danish Digital Library
Jakob Heide Petersen
Head of division, Danish Agency of Culture
NAPLE Assembly
Copenhagen 2012

2. Contents
• The Danish library sector
• Library developments
• The Danish Digital Library
– The challenge
– The Ting project
– The solution
• Implementation
• Related developments
• Issues

3. Some Danish public library key figures
• Population 5.56 million
• Local authorities 98,
• 500 public libraries (main and
branches)
• Total budget: 355 million euro
(64 euro per. capita)
• Staff: 4.500 (2.100 librarians)
• 36 million visits, 45 million
loans (8,2 loans per capita)
• Population library usage:
– 1/3 frequent users (several
times a moth)
– 1/3 occasional users (several
times a year)
– 1/3 non-users

4. Act regarding library services
• Cooperation between research
and public libraries
• The extended library concept
(all media)
• Free access to all primary
services
• Few services at a charge
• Framework for the library
structure: regionalisation, inter-
municipal payment

5. Recent library developments
• Reform of municipalities in 2006 – from 275 to 98
municipalities
• 300 service points closed from 2000 to 2008
• 130 service points closed in 2007 following reform of
municipalities
• Report on the public libraries after the reform of the
municipalities in the fall of 2008
• Debate in parliament on the development of libraries
• Commission on the Public Libraries in the Knowledge
Society
5

6. Commission report – April 2010
Recommendations with
five action lines:
1. Open libraries
2. Inspiration and learning
3. The Danish Digital
Library
4. Partnerships
5. Professional
development
6

7. Awareness of web-based library materials
Use of library e-resources (20 public libaries 2011)
Games and media
Movies
E-books
Music
Articles
Audio books
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Not relevant Don't know Know but don't use Know and use

8. The Danish Digital Library
• The challenges
– Competitive web-based library services.
– Highly visible web-based materials.
– Consolidated it-solutions
– Collaboration
• The solution
– “A joint solution for digital presentation that can be used by all municipal
libraries and libraries in other sectors”
• Collaboration between Ministry of Culture and Local Government
Denmark (LGDK)
– Work started in spring 2011 and report published in March 2012
– Use of it consultants to evaluate existing library collaboration
8

9. Approach
• Focus on infrastructure (not portals)
• Modular and open source
• Evaluation of existing initiative – TING
• Focus on public libraries
• Use of it consultants to evaluate existing library
collaboration
• Negotiation with municipalities
9

10. The TING project
• Open source collaboration with additional focus on open
data and innovation
• Modular service oriented infrastructure
• Collaboration between
– DBC (Public limited company owned by government and local
government)
– Aarhus municipal library
– Copenhagen municipal library
• DBC technical partner (infrastructure, data well)
• Started in fall 2008
• Used by a number of large public libraries
10

11. Service Oriented Architecture

12. Many user interfaces

13. Assessment by it-consultants
(Devoteam)
Assessment of TING The Danish Digital Library
• Favourable assessment • Presentation + access to
– Open source, scalable materials
– Best practise architecture • Additional technical
– Good experiences with components
practical use
• Purchasing
• National solution means – Consortia
increased need for: – Joint negotiations
– Organisation
– Administration of the
– Governance purchasing process
– Technical integration

14. The technical solution
CMS CMS
CMS
Access
management
Webservices
ERMS
Acquisition
Payment
Access
Administration Data well
Statistics

15. The Danish Digital Library
• Organisation
– Multiple vendors, use of tenders
– Contract management and purchaser/supplier models
– Coherent infrastructure
• Technical elements
– Data well that handles enriched data (user generated content,
recommendations, book covers)
– Search
– National and local presentation on the internet
– ERMS
– Access and rights management

16. Organisation
Steering Committee
Coordination group
Secretariat
Purchasing It-development Development and
presentation

17. Implementation
• Budget
– National government: 2,3 million euro
– Local government: max. 3,7 million euro (max. 0,69 euro pr.
capita)
• Membership
– Implementation costs estimated at 3,75 million euro in 2-3 years
– Voluntary for the individual municipality
– Goal: within three years 80-90 % of the population should be
covered by the solution
– The implementation should result in net savings for the individual
library (positive business case)

18. Related developments
• National tender of library system
– Not an OPAC
– Open modular service oriented system
– Focus on transactions and administration
– Mediation and user interface to be handled by CMS
– Almost all municipalities participating
• E-books
– National service started in November 2011
– Huge success
• Mobile platforms
– A lot of projects on apps and mobile solutions

19. Issues
• Opportunities
– New service delivery strategies (channel migration) from printed books
to e-books
– Joint thematic presentations
– Other sectors school libraries, research libraries
– Partnerships and international collaboration
– Library advocacy
– Mandate to act as representative for all public libraries
• Challenges
– Equal access
– Transaction based or relation based services
– Free commercial services (e.g. music, YouTube, Google Books)

20. Questions?
• jhp@kulturstyrelsen.dk
• Presentation available on www.slidehare.net
• The Ting project: http://ting.dk/ and
http://www.slideshare.net/hernvall/tingconcept-elag-conference-presentati