E-Books Program
The Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication (CIP) Program E-books Program is a program that provides a combined CIP data block for books that are published simultaneously in both electronic and print form. Library of Congress CIP e-book metadata are distributed to WorldCat and other bibliographic utilities for use by libraries and vendors. CIP e-book metadata are considered the highest quality and most complete metadata available to publishers and vendors for their e-book packages. Having the best metadata assigned to your e-books will make your titles more accessible and retrievable by users worldwide.
The CIP Program has historically been used for print books, allowing publishers to submit details about forthcoming titles so that the Library of Congress can create and provide cataloging data that can be included in the book's front matter. The CIP e-books program extends this service to digital publications, ensuring that e-books also receive cataloging data before they are released. This is particularly important for libraries and institutions that need to catalog e-books in their systems, making them easier to discover and manage.
A CIP publisher that publishes a book simultaneously in both print and electronic formats is eligible for the E-books Program. The CIP Program developed an easy process to provide a combined CIP data block for simultaneously published e-books and print books. Simply check the box on the CIP Request indicating that you would like to receive e-book metadata; also include the ISBN for the e-book. This allows the creation of two separate bibliographic records - one for the print format and another for the electronic format. The metadata from both records are combined into one CIP data block. By checking the box, you agree to send us a digital-rights-free copy of the e-book upon publication, in addition to the print book
If you wish to receive CIP metadata for your e-book, please review and accept the following:
- I have already transmitted to the Library either the complete text or the core required materials of each print book for which I am requesting e-book CIP data, and I will include the complete and unaltered e-book CIP data in the published e-book.
- I will give the Library a copy of the published e-book to be included in its collection and made available to Library staff and registered users through the Library's secure network.
- In the event that I submit additional published e-books to the Library that have not received CIP data, I understand that such books will not receive CIP data and may be made available to Library staff and registered users in the same manner as CIP books.