May Release of Ex Libris Summon Enriches Discovery Experience and Improves Library Productivity

Chicago, IL—May 9, 2017. Ex Libris^®, a ProQuest company, is pleased to announce that it has launched a new release of the Ex Libris Summon^® discovery service to help libraries further address researcher and student needs and streamline operations. The release includes integration with the Ex Libris bX^® Recommender service and ProQuest Syndetics Unbound catalog enrichment service, as well as an enhanced integration with the Ex Libris Alma^® library services platform. Summon customers will now benefit from improved discoverability of open-access content and will leverage additional features to help guide patrons on their research journey.

Libraries can now increase serendipitous discovery by embedding the bX Recommender service, which provides automated suggestions of relevant scholarly articles. The suggestions are based on anonymous usage patterns from millions of patrons around the world. The integration of Summon with Syndetics Unbound enables libraries to enrich records with title recommendations, author information, look-inside-the-book views, series information, professional reviews, reader reviews, and much more, to maximize the value of library collections and help researchers discover more about relevant resources.

Another significant aspect of this Summon release is the enhanced integration with the Alma library services platform. Libraries using Summon and Alma can now experience a more efficient way of managing all their resources while maintaining the discovery experience that they are used to. The tight connection between Summon and Alma also enables customers to streamline rights management, publish catalog data, and display a new patron services page in Summon.

The Ex Libris commitment to the discoverability of open-access materials remains strong. Open-access content indicators are now embedded within Summon search results, and filtering capabilities in the Summon user interface and advanced search page have been added. Documentation on the open-access content that is discoverable in Summon is also available.

The open-access enhancements, as well as the integration with Alma, the bX Recommender service, and the Syndetics Unbound service, are available whether customers use the standard Summon interface or the Summon API.

”This release represents a significant development of the Summon solution,” commented Shlomi Kringel, Ex Libris corporate vice president of discovery and delivery solutions. ”It reflects our deep commitment to improving discovery for our broad user community by providing researchers and students with a rich discovery experience that includes open access material as well as supporting library operations. We will continue to deliver on the strong Summon roadmap and work closely with the Summon Product Working Group and our customers worldwide through our collaborative enhancement process.”

Ex Libris, a ProQuest company, is a leading global provider of cloud-based solutions for higher education. Offering SaaS solutions for the management and discovery of the full spectrum of library and scholarly materials, as well as mobile campus solutions driving student engagement and success, Ex Libris serves thousands of customers in 90 countries. For more information about Ex Libris, see our website, and join us on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Twitter.