Resource Sharing Committee: NDL Digitized Contents Transmission Service for Libraries

Changes have been made to lower the barriers for applying to the National Diet Library (NDL)’s Digitized Contents Transmission Service for Libraries (DCTL). Specifically:

• Legality check: A library director’s signature with legal assistance is now acceptable.
• Patron supervision: Only “reasonable preventative measures” are required.
• Jurisdiction: Disputes may be resolved in good faith, with jurisdiction tied to the defendant’s location rather than Tokyo courts.

Since April 2024, libraries can also apply for either viewing-only or viewing + printing access (new contracts are required for the latter).

Please be sure to use the revised forms available at https://www.ndl.go.jp/en/library/dcts/index.html#anchor04

The Digitized Contents Transmission Service for Libraries (the Service) is provided by the National Diet Library, Japan (NDL) as a means of making digitized versions of out-of-print or otherwise difficult-to-obtain materials available to the general public at public or university libraries that subscribe to the Service.
For an outline of the service, please see the following:

• Digitized Contents Transmission Service for Libraries Overseas (PDF: 423KB)

The Service is provided under the provisions of the Copyright Law of Japan as stipulated in Paragraph 3, Article 31 and is operated under the terms of the Agreement on Limited Transmission of Digitized Contents to Libraries by the National Diet Library as compiled by the Stakeholder Council for Digitization and Use of Library Materials, which comprises organizations of copyright holders, publishers, and other interested parties in Japan.

Libraries that wish to subscribe to the Service should submit an application to the NDL for approval. This page introduces the application procedure for librarians.