Case Study: British Library achieves secure, controlled access to UK digital heritage with Ericom Software's AccessNow

The British Library Makes the UK's Digital Heritage Accessible with Ericom's AccessNow

The British Library faced new UK legislation requiring it to ingest and provide tightly controlled access to vast volumes of digital material (more than 100,000 digital items in year one and capture of 4.8 million websites). The institution needed to allow on-site reading by one user at a time, prevent copying or downloads, and deliver a single access solution across six Legal Deposit Libraries — challenges it addressed with Ericom Software’s AccessNow HTML5 access solution.

Ericom Software deployed AccessNow in a shared, virtualised environment (VMware on HP blades) so readers can open resources with a single click from any device without downloading client software; the system enforces one-user-per-item, blocks unauthorized copying, and brings up the correct viewer in two to three seconds. The deployment serves over 1,000 workstations across the six libraries, delivered a cost-effective, centrally managed access model, and provided fast, secure, legally compliant access to the UK’s digital heritage.

British Library

Lewis Crawford

Manager, Architecture Group