MEDIA Document Server – User Policy

1. Objectives, scope, and criteria

The library's document server provides an organizational and technical framework for faculty staff, researchers and students of the University of Bremen and other institutions of higher learning in Bremen to publish academic/scientific documents in digital formats. This service is provided by the State and University Library of Bremen (SuUB) and enables the publication of academic/scientific documents on the internet for the purposes of research and teaching.

Digital documents uploaded to this service are assigned persistent identifiers and addresses, and are indexed on national and international library catalogs, search engines, and other reference tools. In addition to this, SuUB Bremen also supplies a long term archival service.

The recommendations and standards of national and international initiatives such as the German Initiative for Network Information (DINI) and the Open Archives Initiative are key points of reference for the operation and ongoing development of this service.

The German Initiative for Network Information has certified that the operation, organization, and technical design of this service comply with its standards.

2. The legal framework

Authors grant the operator of the library's document server the following usage rights:

• the right to store data by electronic means, in particular in databases, and to make this data publicly available for on-screen reproduction or for users to print (online use) wholly or partially
• the right to register works with long term archival services and to transmit works to such services
• the right to convert works into formats suitable for storage by long term archival / imaging services as appropriate to the content (such works will continue to be stored at the original archive)

The author assures the publisher that no third party rights shall be breached by the publication of documents through this service.

Should a publication breach third-party rights, the author shall indemnify the State and University Library Bremen (SuUB) against any claims made by third parties in relation to copyright infringements. The author will notify the State and University Library Bremen (SuUB) immediately of any potential infringement of intellectual property rights that would preclude the publication of a document. All liability for the contents of documents rests with the author(s) / the service user publishing the document. The Library shall not be held liable for the contents of documents published through this service.

The user grants the State and University Library Bremen (SuUB) the right to make documents publicly available through its data networks and to allow users to retrieve copies of such documents. Accordingly, users enter into a non-exclusive publishing agreement when using the library's document server. The publication of documents through this service does not preclude their publication elsewhere in journals, monographs, or on other servers.

In the course of the publishing process, authors are required to acknowledge the "Terms of contract for the publication on the document server" of the State and University Library of Bremen and accept these terms by transmitting a metadata description of their document to the service provider. In the case of dissertations, postdoctoral theses, and other final theses (Master’s, Magister etc), users are also required to submit a signed affidavit (Declaration of Consent).

Works published elsewhere may also be published (self-archiving) on the library's document server, – whether simultaneously or subsequently – as the author’s publishing agreement permits.

In accordance with the recommendations of the German Science Council and the resolution of the Academic Senate of the University of Bremen, researchers based at the University of Bremen are advised to secure such rights when negotiating a publishing agreement and to ensure that their work is subsequently published on the library's document server (please note that some publishers may hold temporary exclusive rights). More information on this topic is available here.

Publications must comply with the following regulations:

• the Terms of Use for Information Processing Systems at the University of Bremen
• the terms of use of the DFN

Documents published on the server in breach of these conditions (2) may be removed from the server at any time.

3. Digital documents

The terms "digital document", as used on this website, refers to documents based on text and images that are stored in a digital format on a data medium, and that are distributed through computer networks.

Documents are uploaded to the document server together with relevant metadata descriptions by the authors or their representatives via online form. Documents uploaded to the server will be made publicly accessible through this service for the agreed period (a minimum period of 5 years).
Documents published on the server cannot be altered or removed from the server following publication.

Authors are responsible for supplying the metadata used to index documents. Documents are indexed against selectable keywords as well as one or more optional classification codes (for example, DDC codes).

Documents published on the library's document server must meet the following conditions:

• they must be intended for public distribution.
• they must not contain dynamic content. Should it be necessary to alter the document, a new version of the digital document will be created.
• they must not be subject to any access restrictions.
• they must comply with the technical specifications stipulated by the State and University Library Bremen (SuUB).

The following types of document can be published on the document server:

• publications and series of publications of an academic / scientific nature
• academic / scientific publications by members of the University of Bremen and other institutions of higher learning in Bremen
• documents which must be published in accordance with examination regulations (special conditions apply to dissertations and postdoctoral theses)
• final theses composed by students completing Diploma, State Examination, Magister and Master’s study programs at the University of Bremen and other institutions of higher learning in Bremen. Please note that such documents may only be published at the recommendation of a member of the teaching staff.

The library's document server will secure the integrity of documents uploaded to the server and ensure that they are both freely accessible and indexed for the duration of the retention period.

Documents published on the server in breach of these conditions may be removed from the server at any time.

4. Technical specifications

• digital documents will be assigned unique and persistent identifiers / addresses that provide direct online access
• documents submitted to the document server will be accessible / searchable through the data network of the State and University Library Bremen, including its E-LIB Electronic Library, as well as regional / national catalogs, reference systems and search engines.
• the indexing, storage, exchange and archiving of documents and metadata uploaded to the server is carried out in accordance with international standards set by initiatives such as the Open Archives Initiative.

Further information: technical documentation