ISSN and DOAJ renew metadata partnership
The ISSN International Centre and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening collaboration on metadata exchange, interoperability and the visibility of open access scholarly resources.
The renewed agreement formalises ongoing cooperation between the two organisations, with a focus on facilitating metadata exchange through APIs and other technical mechanisms, maintaining high standards of data quality, ensuring interoperability between their systems, and promoting each other’s services.
The partnership builds on a relationship that dates back to the launch of DOAJ in 2003, when the ISSN International Centre first provided access to the ISSN Portal through Lund University, where DOAJ was originally established. Since DOAJ became an independent organisation in 2013, the collaboration has continued under a series of dedicated agreements.
Under the new MoU, designated members of the DOAJ team will continue to have access to the ISSN Portal, including ISSN lookup and download services. The ISSN International Centre will also use DOAJ metadata to identify matching records within ROAD, while DOAJ will receive updated metadata through its Premium Metadata Services.
Dr Gaëlle Béquet, Director of the ISSN International Centre, said: “Quality metadata is the foundation of scholarly communication. By strengthening our collaboration with DOAJ, we are supporting the accurate identification and discoverability of open access journals worldwide.”
Joanna Ball, Managing Director of DOAJ, added: “Providing verification and validation to the journal metadata in DOAJ is one of the most valued of DOAJ services and by interlinking services, like DOAJ and ISSN, we are building a network of trust. It is only fitting that we renew this collaboration with ISSN.”
ISSN International Centre recently introduced a smarter identifier – improving publication discovery, metadata quality, and interoperability.