Teosto participates in the international ISNI project – Aiming to improve music metadata
The metadata of Copyright Management Organizations (CMOs) representing the creative industries in Finland will be enhanced by acquiring ISNIs for creators. In addition to Teosto, the project involves the Finnish Copyright Management Organizations Gramex, Kopiosto, Kuvasto and Sanasto. The National Library of Finland will coordinate the project in its role as the national ISNI Registration Agency.
ISNI, short for International Standard Name Identifier, is widely used around the world. ISNIs are used to uniquely identify any individuals and organizations contributing to creative activities, including for example authors, translators, composers, performers, visual artists, producers and publishers. The use of ISNIs has become more common in recent years, especially in the music sector after major streaming services introduced them.
In recent years, Teosto has focused on improving the quality of administrative metadata and on renewing information systems. Introduction of ISNIs will facilitate the identification of contributors to creative works and improve the reliability and interoperability of the data related to contributors.
“It’s important to improve the quality and usability of metadata, and development calls for extensive and persistent cooperation. This is why we want to join other Finnish CMOs in the ISNI project led by the National Library”, says Ano Sirppiniemi, Chief Digital Officer of Teosto.
The CMOs participating in the project encompass the music, literary and visual sectors, as well as part of the audiovisual sector, and represent well over 100 000 Finnish royalty recipients. The project, which was launched in February 2022, will run until the end of 2023. During this time, a comprehensive range of ISNIs will be acquired for the rightholders represented by the copyright organizations.
The project has been enabled by a subsidy granted to the CMOs by the Ministry of Education and Culture. The subsidy is intended for promoting the reform of cultural and creative services as well as the related production and operating models. It is part of Finland’s national Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) plan, funded by the Next Generation EU instrument.
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