1. The Institution Registry
An Idea Whose Time Has
Come
SSP June 9,2006
Atypon Delivers Audrey D.Melkin
audrey@atypon.com

2. About Atypon
qAtypon is a developer of online content
hosting systems
§ More than 70 publishers and 2,000 journals
currently served
qDeveloper for current CrossRef system
qFocused since 1996 on the scholarly
publishing community

3. The Atypon Institution Registry
qA single place
§ to store all the authentication* information
for institutions
§ for all service providers (publishers, agents
and hosting vendors) to get the information
they need --and only that
§ for library administrators to manage this
information and control its distribution
*Authentication = Official name, contacts, administrators,
IPs, Athens, Shibboleth, Agent IDs etc

4. Why is it important for libraries?
qIt provides a single place to manage all
authentication information for
§ Publisher sites
§ Portals
§ Agents
qCreate Once - Update Once
§ No need to register
§ No need to master different interfaces
§ No need to remember all the sites that need
updating
§ No need to “activate” subscriptions

5. Why is it important for publishers?
qProvide better customer experience
§ Hassle-free, immediate service sign-up
§ Continuity when changing service providers
qKnow the licensee
§ Communicate accurate information with
licensee and other agents and vendors of the
licensee
§ Sell online subscriptions more effectively
qCut down customer service calls!

6. Key concepts
q What is a “licensing unit”?
§ Any entity that licenses content
• An institution (with all its libraries)
• A subset of an institution, such as a campus or two
departments
• A consortium
q A university may have/belong to multiple
licensing units
q Each licensing unit will be identified by a unique
DOI (Digital Object Identifier)

7. Why a DOI for each licensing unit?
qEach licensee needs a globally recognized
(registered) identifier
qDOIs are registered with a public
registration agency (CrossRef or CNRI)
qDOIs are made for the world of electronic
communication
qDOIs are here, now, proven!

8. Data standards
qEach DOI is a proxy for
§ All names and identifiers (ISIL, MARC21 etc)
§ Authentication metadata
§ Institution customization, e.g. link-server,
banners, etc.
qData uploaded by service providers
§ COUNTER for reports
§ ONIX/NISO standards for holdings, licensing,
etc.

9. Interface for service providers
qWebServices API for service providers
qAll data delivered in XML
§ Authentication metadata
§ COUNTER reports
§ ONIX (various standards)
qService providers receive information via
push or pull

10. Operational details in discussion
q To be governed by an independent board,
composed of library associations, standards
organizations, publishers, and other 3 rd parties
q Available at no cost to institutions, publishers,
and other third parties, unless the Board decides
to institute a service charge
q Privacy and security of the system guaranteed

11. Where is Atypon for version 1.0?
q XML metadata schema: prototype
q Services API: prototype
q Customer service procedures - for discussion
• Institution administrator customer service
• Service provider technical assistance
q Migrate institution metadata for discussion
q Implementation schedule
§ Interface pilots: Charleston 11/05 & MidWinter 1/06
§ 1/06 – 12/06: Atypon continues development &
monitors industry developments, i.e., UK pilot, related
projects
§ Official release: TBD