The workshop - Building and Owning Biotechnology Databases was
held at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Purmerend, The Netherlands on 22-23 September
1998. It was organised by The Biotechnology Information Strategic Forum,
with support from DGXII of the Commission of the European Communities.
What every database builder should know
You want to build a database. You have identified a need, the basic content, and how you can order, validate, and add-value-to, records/data for scientific good. You need this product for your own work, but you recognise that it could be useful to others in the wider world.
Even if the database is only for your use, it is essential that you first define the aims and scope of the product. What will the data be used for? Can additional uses be identified (for little extra investment!). If the database is for other scientific users, discuss their needs as well - define the market and the market need; and think about how needs will evolve in the future.
A next step is to look at the competition. There are hundreds of databases available. Many are private but many more are hidden away on the web and it is amazing how many unique databases turn out to be very similar to others already in existence.
If users of the database will be asked to pay, make sure it gives them value for money. Think not just about the scientific content but also about the whole service the users will receive, including means of access, help in using the system, documentation, reliable administration of their account, etc. Overall, the users will want something better than the competition can provide, or at a lower price, or preferably both."
The database management system, database structure will not be discussed here. The structure must naturally allow one to put data in and then retrieve it; and if possible the system should follow international standards and syntax so that it can be linked to and searched. Today, it pays to see if software like SRS will be able to handle the content as well.
But the content is the most important. The most important element here is copyright: which is to protect both yourself and the other owners of the data you might wish to use. The essentials of copyright are:
Fixation. Creators have rights under copyright law, from the moment a "writing" is "fixed" in a tangible medium (paper, diskette, hard drive). Registration is not required, neither are notices.
Reproduction. Copyright law gives the creator the right to set the terms and conditions for the reproduction of the work (including the right to make it widely available for anyone to copy without charge).
Expression not ideas. Copyright protects the expressive nature of a writing or work; not the underlying concepts, discoveries, inventions or ideas represented or discussed in the work.
Attribution & integrity. Creators also have the right, under copyright law and under moral rights, to be appropriately identified as creators and to ensure the integrity of the result of reproduction of the work.
Subsidiary rights. Creators also have the right to create and control the creation of subsidiary and derivative works and to license or authorise others to use the work (or parts thereof) including in other media or for translations etc.
Transfers & licenses. Creators can transfer their rights or license those rights (or various slices thereof) without limitation (except that moral rights, attribution and integrity, cannot be transferred in most countries, although the administration of moral rights can be), and in most countries, the transferee (most commercial STM publishers, for example) steps into the shoes of the creators.
Employers/governments. Some creators do not have copyright in their works as in some countries the rights of employees are automatically (or by written agreement) transferred to their employers – also US governmental works are public domain, no copyright - UK crown copyright works differently—choice of creator or institution regarding transfer or obtained by government.
Furthermore, any database compiler would be wise to:
Clear your position before you start. If any third party has a claim to exploit anything you develop while under contract, discuss this through and see whether any agreement can be reached on joint exploitation. If not, make sure the university takes the full responsibility for maintaining the database and sustaining it after you have left; or think again about launching the product outside the confines of your colleagues.
A database compiler is responsible for the content of that database. It is their responsibility to ensure that the content they use is copyright cleared. This means that on some occasions one will have to check that a database that delivers information to you, perhaps on an exchange basis, has the copyright and IPRs needed to confer these rights on you. Furthermore, it is also important that you claim and invoke your own copyright in ways you feel are appropriate.
Today, databases increasingly have to "earn their own keep". Thus it is increasingly important to examine and research what the users want. As said elsewhere in these proceedings, different users want different things but "quality" is essential. And among the community of online database users, quality is usually assessed under the following headings:
Finally, databases link, and sometimes have to be
linked to achieve the maximum scientific benefit. To whom are you linking?
Who owns that database? Is it in the public or private domain? Do such
links enhance your product? Can a set link improve your database and is
therefore a formal link desirable?