Libraries and library automation in europe: Introduction to the special issue of Library Hi Tech

The European Union (EU) has provided significant financial support and motivation in creating links among Europe's major libraries and in enabling the region's poorer countries to develop needed technical infrastructures needed by their libraries. EU Parliament authorized the Libraries, Networking, and Telematics section to support “Collaboration between libraries in the field of data processing.” From 1990 to 1994, 51 projects were funded and in 1996 an additional 21 received support. Two recent activities are of particular interest. The European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics brings together computer scientists and other information specialists from the national laboratories of 13 European countries. ERCIM's scientists possess substantial expertise relevant to digital library development, and they have submitted a proposal to the EU directorate to create a pan‐European digital library that initially will enable exchange of their own technical reports. A second activity, called INFO2000, was initiated by the EU in May 1996. This program is intended to “stimulate the development of the European content industry and to encourage use of multimedia in the emerging information society.”