NISO Representative Annual Report 2022

submitted by Nara Newcomer

Current Roster

  • Nara Newcomer, NISO Representative (appointed 2014, until resignation or removal)
  • Kimmy Szeto, NISO Alternate Representative (appointed 2020, until resignation or removal)

List of Previous Goals and Progress Made

  1. Identify and vote on ballots of MLA significance, seeking input from appropriate groups. Represent the voice of MLA through votes and ballot comments. The most significant votes are detailed below.
    • Create a NISO Recommended Practice, Interoperable System of Controlled Digital Lending (IS-CDL)
      • Our vote: approve.
      • Our comments: This is valuable work. We recommend the work cover not just books but also (a) other documents such as music documents (“scores”) and cartographic documents (“maps”) and (b) audiovisual materials such as audio and video. It is common for libraries to have legally acquired digital format versions of such content.
    • ISO/FDIS 15706-2: International Standard Audiovisual Number (ISAN) – Part 2: Version identifier
      • Our vote: approve.
    • ISO 5127:2017: Information and documentation – Foundation and vocabulary
      • Our vote: revise/amend.
      • Formal comments: We recommend revisions to address (1) LRM has replaced the FR suite of documents as IFLA standards; (2) the definition of “score” (3.5.7.48), which is presently very narrow both culturally and temporally.
      • Comments to MLA: We consulted with CMC Vocabularies and Contents Standards Subcommittee members on our recommendation, which included a 3-page document with more detailed comments. — This ballot was ultimately approved; ALA voted along with us to revise/amend, citing revisions needed to reflect IFLA LRM. However, there were 12 approve votes. We did receive correspondence from NISO and feel our concerns were at least heard, if not acted on at this time.
    • ISO/FDIS 3297: International standard serial number (ISSN)
      • Our vote: approve.
      • Comments to MLA: NISO stated that “This was a minor revision.” The standard appropriately notes that “Monographs, sound and video recordings, notated music publications, audiovisual works, textual works and musical works have their own standard identifiers and are not specifically mentioned in this document. Such items can carry an ISSN in addition to their appropriate identifiers when they are part of a continuing resource.”
    • ISO/DIS 16245: Boxes, file covers and other enclosures, made from cellulosic materials
      • Our vote: approve.
      • Comments to MLA: Concerns appropriate material and specifications for enclosures. Appropriately notes that dimensions shall be larger than the dimensions of documents they contain, a common consideration for notated music.
    • ISO 9707: Statistics on the production and distribution of books, newspapers, periodicals and electronic publications
      • Our vote: Abstain.
      • Comments to MLA: On the very first page, this standard helpfully and clearly establishes a scope that excludes notated music.
  2. Facilitate input on NISO Video and Audio Metadata working group.
    • We facilitated this input.

List of Future Goals

  1. Identify and vote on ballots of MLA significance, seeking input from appropriate groups. Represent the voice of MLA through votes and ballot comments.
    • Strategic Plan Info: Organizational Excellence, Objective 3: Pursue joint ventures with other organizations that offer financial as well as professional opportunities and advantages.
    • Strategic Plan Info: Advocacy goal area, objective 1: Develop and disseminate official positions on intellectual property, access, and scholarly communication issues.
    • While we cannot predict the ballots that will appear in the next year, it is unfortunately common for standards to be written in a way that centers books and text-based documents and ignores or does not fully serve music documents. Examples of recent contributions include advocating for music-specific creator roles in NISO Z39.104-202X — Contributor Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) and for advocating for clarity of whether one is reference text-based documents only or also including music documents (scores) in ISO 9230:2007 — Determination of price indexes for print and electronic media.
    • Review and vote on NISO ballots.
  2. Facilitate input on NISO Video and Audio Metadata working group.