MIC Project Manager, Library of Congress, Visiting Scholar, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Library Technical Services Building, 47 Davidson Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-5603, USA. Tel: +1 732 445 5904 Fax: +1 732 445 5888 Email: jjohnson@loc.gov

Abstract

This paper examines the metadata strategies of Moving Image Collections (MIC), a collaboration of the Library of Congress and the Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA). MIC offers a union catalog, archive directory and informational resources about moving images and their preservation, through a portal structure delivering customized information to diverse constituencies. The paper discusses three key principles underlying MIC's strategy and how they have been applied to meet the respective missions of the two co-sponsors. The key principles are promotion of standards, acceptance of diversity in collections and schemas, and the need to extend effective metadata use to all repositories. This visionary metadata strategy takes MIC's functionalities beyond asset management. MIC creates a framework for collaborative community building and an R&D platform to explore issues of digital rights management, low-level indexing and the intersection of public and private sector goals, in an effort to advance the Library of Congress mission to preserve and educate.