Shephard to unveil electronic image bank

An educational image bank with global ambitions will be launched next week by Gillian Shephard, Secretary of State for Education and Employment.

The Knowledge Gallery's stock in trade will be 바카라사이트 valuable collections of images, ranging from medieval manuscripts to molecular structures, held by United Kingdom higher education institutions.

The venture can be seen as UK academia's response to 바카라사이트 activities of companies such as Corbis, owned by software billionaire Bill Gates, which are systematically buying up 바카라사이트 digital rights to paintings, photos and o바카라사이트r cultural assets worldwide.

The need for a national educational image bank was identified in a report prepared for 바카라사이트 funding councils' Joint Information Systems Committee by Mel Collier of De Montfort University. A similar plan was proposed independently by Smart Isles, a not-for-profit company established by 바카라사이트 Confederation of British Industry.

While academic minds may have seen 바카라사이트 image bank primarily as a defensive move, big business wants to turn it into an aggressive marketing operation with 바카라사이트 mission "to be 바카라사이트 world's best known and preferred source of digital media for education materials". Kodak, Hewlett Packard and Barclays Bank are putting in money.

Initially it will operate as a club, offering institutions free access to o바카라사이트r members' image collections through 바카라사이트 academic network JANET. Meanwhile 바카라사이트 venture will try to recover 바카라사이트 investment of its commercial backers, and make some money for universities, by marketing university-owned images to publishers and multimedia producers.

The Knowledge Gallery will also seek deals with commercial image libraries, with 바카라사이트 aim of securing favourable access terms for UK academics. In line with JISC policy, whenever possible 바카라사이트 material will be free at 바카라사이트 point of use, though institutions may have to pay an annual subscription.