Clarify copyright aspects and plan for open and broad access

Identify the rights applying and the individuals and organisations holding them, and engage in discussions with them prior to starting the digitisation. Define the copyright that is compatible with the identified rights, and that would be most suitable for the purpose(s) for which the digitisation takes place. Follow and encourage adherence to the principle that what is in the public domain should remain in the public domain after digitisation. Integrate licensing and copyright provisions into your access and re-use agreement, and include such copyright information in the metadata. Remember that personal data may be contained in the material itself or in the metadata. GDPR regulations contain exceptions relating to processing for archiving purposes in the public interest, but nevertheless contain restrictions on the processing of personal data of living people.

When outsourcing, ensure that the call and contract require that any copyright (or associated rights), including for metadata, be transferred to the beneficiary institution or released into the public domain, and not reserved by the service provider. Plan from the beginning how the collection will be made available to your target users. Provide broad public access, storing and distributing data via open public platforms as well as self-hosting.

When publishing on Europeana, open licenses are much encouraged; it will increase your quality rating and bring additional exposure of your data! Read more about Europeana’s requirements in the “Tools” section at the end of this chapter. Ensure the content is also available in open formats, in order to prevent vendor lock-in or restrictive re-use. If possible, include the metadata captured as machine-readable interlinked data (Linked Open Data), in order to enhance findability. Read more about copyright aspects and planning for open and broad access in the “Tools” section at the end of this chapter.

Keep in mind you do not only need to create your digital collection, you also need to document it in order to make it findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable (FAIR). Digital materials should be described so that a user can discover characteristics of the collection, including scope, format, restrictions on access, and ownership. It is recommended that the metadata also describes the provenance of the collection, that is, the full history of the material and its ownership, from its discovery or production to the present day. Producing the necessary metadata often takes time, which is important to consider when planning a digitization project.