EDItEUR has published a new subject classification system intended for use throughout the global book and e-book trade.
Thema is a book subject classification scheme that meets the needs of the global book trade and can be used alongside or in place of the many national classification schemes. Using a single, globally-relevant scheme reduces costs and duplication of effort, increases metadata quality, streamlines the international exchange of metadata, and eliminates the need for complex and difficult to manage scheme-to-scheme mapping.
Thema has been under development since the launch of the project at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2012, under the guidance of a management board and a technical development group. A pilot version of Thema was published in April 2013.
The truly international ambition of Thema was demonstrated by translation of the pilot version into a range of languages, including French, Italian, German, Spanish, Arabic, and Russian. Version 1.0 is currently available in full only in English, but translations into other languages are already under way.
Melody K. Smith
Sponsored by Access Innovations, the world leader in thesaurus, ontology, and taxonomy creation and metadata application.
