Biblioteksentralen
Encyclopedia
Biblioteksentralen AL is a library center for public libraries
in Norway
, with offices in Oslo
. It is the leading supplier of products and services to these libraries. Libraries purchase books and equipment through Biblioteksentralen.
Libraries make use of Biblioteksentralen's centralized library catalog
system, BIBBI. It contains 170,000 bibliographic records, with 11,000 records added each year. A simplified version of the MARC
21/NORMARC format is used, called BSMARC.
Biblioteksentralen is cooperative
ly owned (the "AL" suffix to the name means "andelslag" or cooperatively held corporation) by 425 municipalities, 14 counties, the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities
and the Norwegian Library Association. It was established in this form in February 1952 after a government resolution in the previous year, but its predecessor Folkeboksamlingenes Ekspedisjon had been around since 1902. The corporation has 56 employees and a turnover of (2006) with a profit from operations of 2 million.
The Norwegian book market is currently undergoing deregulation
, meaning both challenges and opportunities for Biblioteksentralen. After July 1, 2006, municipal primary schools are no longer required to purchase textbooks from local bookstores. BS Norli Skole AS, a corporation established in April 2006 where Biblioteksentralen owns 34 percent, in its first year was able to win a majority of municipal tenders for purchase and gain a 40 percent market share. Such changes have a greater impact on Biblioteksentralen than the introduction of new technologies such as web services and RFID.
Some important library institutions in Norway besides Biblioteksentralen are the National Library of Norway and the academic library center Bibsys
.
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, with offices in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. It is the leading supplier of products and services to these libraries. Libraries purchase books and equipment through Biblioteksentralen.
Libraries make use of Biblioteksentralen's centralized library catalog
Library catalog
A library catalog is a register of all bibliographic items found in a library or group of libraries, such as a network of libraries at several locations...
system, BIBBI. It contains 170,000 bibliographic records, with 11,000 records added each year. A simplified version of the MARC
MARC standards
MARC, MAchine-Readable Cataloging, is a data format and set of related standards used by libraries to encode and share information about books and other material they collect...
21/NORMARC format is used, called BSMARC.
Biblioteksentralen is cooperative
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
ly owned (the "AL" suffix to the name means "andelslag" or cooperatively held corporation) by 425 municipalities, 14 counties, the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities
Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities
The Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities is an employers' organisation in Norway.It was founded in 1972 as a merger between the Union of Norwegian Cities and the Norwegian Association of Rural Municipalities...
and the Norwegian Library Association. It was established in this form in February 1952 after a government resolution in the previous year, but its predecessor Folkeboksamlingenes Ekspedisjon had been around since 1902. The corporation has 56 employees and a turnover of (2006) with a profit from operations of 2 million.
The Norwegian book market is currently undergoing deregulation
Deregulation
Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
, meaning both challenges and opportunities for Biblioteksentralen. After July 1, 2006, municipal primary schools are no longer required to purchase textbooks from local bookstores. BS Norli Skole AS, a corporation established in April 2006 where Biblioteksentralen owns 34 percent, in its first year was able to win a majority of municipal tenders for purchase and gain a 40 percent market share. Such changes have a greater impact on Biblioteksentralen than the introduction of new technologies such as web services and RFID.
Some important library institutions in Norway besides Biblioteksentralen are the National Library of Norway and the academic library center Bibsys
BIBSYS
BIBSYS is a supplier of library and information systems for all the Norwegian university Libraries, the National Library of Norway, college libraries, and a number of research libraries and institutions....
.
External links
- Biblioteksentralen, official website, http://www.bibsent.no/
- BIBBI, library catalog, http://www.aleph.no/bibbi