Making a deposit
Deposit methods
Publishers can use the following methods to deposit to NED:
- through the online portal
- as an email attachment for e-newsletters, upon agreement with the state or territory library of place of publication
- through an online bulk deposit process managed directly by member libraries (up to 1000 items at a time)
- through a bulk FTP deposit process managed collaboratively with NLA (primarily for large commercial publishers).
Where a publisher is unable to use one of these methods, alternative arrangements may be arranged by contacting your info@ned.gov.au or your state/territory library.
To deposit, information regarding the publisher, the publication, and the access conditions is required. Publishers using the NED portal may choose to register. Registered depositors can view their deposit history, modify their details and adjust access conditions.
Accepted file formats
The following file formats can be deposited with NED:
- monographs (e.g. books, government publications) – .epub, .mobi and .pdf formats
- serials (e.g. journals, magazines, annual reports, newsletters including ‘members only’ newsletters, newspapers) - .epub, .mobi and .pdf formats
- music scores - .epub, .mobi and .pdf formats
- maps – .pdf, .geopdf, .tiff and geotiff formats
Files must be under 500MB in size. If you have larger files contact your member library for more information.
If you publish in more than one of these formats, our preference is .epub. NED does not accept Word documents or Portfolio PDFs.
NED cannot accept hardware carriers. Some member libraries may accept hard drives, CDs, USBs and other physical electronic media if the legal deposit item was originally published and made publically available in this form.
Contact your member library to discuss options if you publish in a different format.
Cover images
An optional cover image can be uploaded as a separate file at the time of deposit. This image will be displayed as a thumbnail beside the file in Trove and member library catalogues. The addition of a unique cover image for every deposit/issue is encouraged for improved accessibility in Trove.
You can upload .jpg, .jpeg, .tif or .tiff format cover images with an RGB colour profile. (While the NED system will accept images with a CMYK colour profile, it cannot currently display them online. You can edit the colour profile of your cover images using image processing software such as Photoshop.)
Files must be under 500MB in size.
Do I need an ISBN, ISSN or ISMN to deposit?
The International Standard Numbers for books (ISBN), serials (ISSN), and music (ISMN) are not mandatory. However, these numbers do provide benefits in the retail trade and make your publication easier to find. See ISBN, ISSN or ISMN for further information.
Presentation of sensitive material on Trove
All books, maps, music, and serial issues that are nominated as sensitive will appear on the Trove discovery interface with the warning "Viewer Discretion Advised". When a reader clicks in Trove or a library catalogue to view the content online, your content will be temporarily hidden with a sensitivity note and an option for the reader to reveal the work.
Titles nominated as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander content will also have a pop-up warning noting the title contains culturally sensitive material in Trove, and the cover will be a blurred placeholder image.
Digital rights management and technological protection measures
Digital rights management (DRM) refers to any technical means used to restrict access to the publication. Technological protection measures (TPM) are often used to do this, such as encryption of files to proprietary locks or watermarks.
Electronic publications deposited with NED need to be free of technological protection measures or digital rights management. This is mandated in the national digital legal deposit legislation and is required to enable the ongoing preservation of the publications.
If you are a self-publisher who is making titles available via online platforms please check your agreement on whether you retain ownership of the intellectual content.
Rejected files
If the NED service detects any DRM protections, viruses or if your file is larger than 500 MB, you will not be able to complete your deposit. You may need to request a DRM-free file from your publishing platform or run a virus check on the file. Contact your member library if you are unsure.
Acknowledgement of successful deposit
You will receive an email when you successfully deposit with the NED service. Please check your spam folder if you have not received an acknowledgement email.
After a publication is deposited
Once publications have been deposited, they are reviewed (some content may not be accepted into the edeposit collection. Publishers will be notified if their content is not accepted/falls outside of the content policy) and processed by one of the NED member libraries (either the National Library or the state/territory library where the publisher is based).
The publications are stored and preserved at the National Library and access is provided in accordance with the relevant legislation, including the Copyright Act 1968 and legal deposit laws, and in accordance with the access conditions nominated by depositors. Discovery of deposited content may occur through NED member library catalogues, Trove, WorldCat and search engines. You can locate your deposit in Trove by logging onto NED and using the View in Trove option in each deposit or by searching directly on Trove (click here for further information on Trove search functions).
When will my publication be made accessible?
You will be able to see the catalogue record for your publication in Trove, the national discovery service, within minutes for most deposits. A catalogue record in any applicable state/ territory and National Library catalogues for the publication will also be available soon after deposit.