UNESCO Sponsors Russian Archives Online Project
UNESCO, the Federal Archival Service of Russia (Rosarhiv) and Abamedia, a USA based media development and production company, recently signed an agreement to co-operate in the Russian Archives Online (RAO) project which has for objective to provide an Internet-based medium for the viewing, searching and licensing of audiovisual materials held by State and other archives and museums in Russia.
The RAO project was developed and financed by Abamedia, in collaboration with the Russian State Film and Photo Archive at Krasnogorsk. It aims to provide free of charge on-line access to electronic catalogues, streaming audiovisual clips, low-resolution images, and narrative text describing its audiovisual archival materials. It also aims to embed the audiovisual assets and other documents into the Russian educational system, on a free access basis and to offer this service to Russian departments of universities worldwide outside of Russia.
The electronic catalogue, which is accessible free of charge, is owned by the Russian State Film and Photo Archive at Krasnogorsk and it will continue to be developed by It is planned to be finished in Russian by July 2002.
Abamedia has taken an obligation after the completion of the electronic catalog to use the catalog to attract orders. For this purpose it is granted the right to assist all the institutions participating in the project of marketing and distributing copies of the documents preserved by them for commercial use outside the territories of Russia, CIS and Baltic States.
The RAO project is described by its developers as a first step of the ambitious World Archives Online (WAO) Project, that is intended to expand the Internet-based medium developed for Russian archives to the world and to become a part of the educational system worldwide, on a free-access basis.
WAO aims to develop the compilation of audiovisual materials and related information into a multilingual storage and retrieval system which will include an electronic catalogue, copyright and owner's rights provisions, digitised audio-visual materials, mechanisms for online viewing, listening, editing and distributing, and safeguards to monitor and prevent unauthorized access and usage of the materials.
UNESCO facilitates equitable and free access to information on public goods and services, including the audiovisual archives, in order to encourage free online education, preserve the world cultural heritage and promote public service broadcasting.
Related Links
· Federal Archival Service of Russia (Rosarhiv)
· Abamedia
· Russian Archives Online (RAO)
· UNESCO Archives Portal
· UNESCO and audiovisual archives
Contact
Voctor Montviloff, UNESCO, Information Society Division
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