The ISNI project of copyright management organisations continues until the end of 2024

Central goals for the second stage include the effective and up-to-date distribution and use of ISNIs by CMOs. Other aims include improving the quality of metadata in the CMOs’ contributor databases and harmonising the metadata. Key development areas in the second stage relate to the construction of versatile interfaces and the development of a continuous ISNI process. The second stage will begin in 2023 and continue until the end of 2024.

ISNIs are vital for digitalisation as persistent, unique and functional identifiers. The copyright management organisations’ services and practices based on data about works and creative contributors can be supported by improving access to contributor metadata and constructing interfaces that enable data transmission.

The National Library coordinates the project and collaborates closely with the CMOs involved. It supervises the development of continuous ISNI processes enabling the CMOs to distribute and use ISNIs. During the second stage, more attention will be paid to the quality of metadata in the CMOs’ contributor databases and to the enhancement of interoperability. The introduction of ISNIs throughout the CMO sector is a significant step towards greater interoperability in data exchange in the creative industries, enabling broader collaboration across sectors.

The CMOs have been granted a subsidy, or structural support, to promote cultural and creative services, and redesign production and operational models. The subsidy or support is part of Finland’s Recovery and Resilience Plan, funded by the NextGeneration EU programmes. (Further information in Finnish is available on the website of the Ministry of Education and Culture.)

In this round, a subsidy was also granted to Kuvasto’s separate collaborative project on the use of interoperable metadata based on ISNIs in the art sector, entitled Taiteilijat haltuun!: yhteistyötä ja yhteentoimivaa metadataa ISNI-tunnusten avulla. The National Library also coordinates this project in the role of an ISNI registration agency. The project aims to acquire ISNIs for artists in the collections management systems of the Finnish Museums Association and Finland’s Art and Art Collections Co-operative and to automate the exchange of metadata between Kuvasto and the Finnish Museums Association using ISNIs. The Kuvasto project is the first to experiment with the use of ISNIs in the exchange of metadata across sectors.