Standards goals for 2025: A recap and a conversation about what may be next

Book supply chain standards are changing rapidly, and more so lately with the multiple regulations coming from the European Union. So, to help identify which recent updates are relevant to you, we’ve created a two-part presentation focused on standards developments from 2024 and the first months of 2025. Let’s break down the presentation's content!

Hot tip: All the resources mentioned throughout the presentation are available here.

Part one: The standards recap you didn’t know you needed

In part one, you’ll find:

• A recap of what’s new for ONIX, which includes:

  • Highlights from codelists releases 64 to 69

  • Insights into the release of ONIX 3.1.1 and ONIX 3.1.2

  • Key takeaways from our series, Advice worth reading from EDItEUR, which so far has covered: ONIX records for books in multiple markets, accessibility metadata in ONIX, and product safety requirements in ONIX.

• A recap on key regulations, including the European Accessibility Act (EAA), the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), and the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR). This section highlights a series of resources that will help you understand the ins and outs of these regulations, as well as the next steps towards compliance. We recommend that even if you’re not directly impacted by these regulations, you get familiar with their requirements, as other jurisdictions may follow the EU’s lead.

• A recap of what’s new for Thema, highlighting key additions made to this subject classification scheme in version 1.6 that are relevant to the Canadian book industry.

• A recap of what’s new for BISAC, which includes highlights from the 2024 updates to the BISAC list, including noteworthy contributions from Canadian market participants.

• An update on ISNI, which highlights a recent publication made by the organization, specifically highlighting the benefits of ISNI for publishers.

Part two: A future-looking chat with our in-house standards expert

In part two, our in-house standards expert, Tom Richardson, has a forward-looking chat with BookNet CEO, Lauren Stewart. Their conversation touches on:

• recent ONIX updates;

• the transition from ONIX 2.1 to 3.0;

• the impact of EU regulations on standards;

• Thema and its importance in the Canadian English and Canadian French book markets; and

• much more!

Go here to access the recording from this session, a key accompanying document listing all the resources and links mentioned, the slides, and the transcript. Explore the Tech Forum content library for more professional content related to standards and other topics.