Access to Web of Science via Discovery Services Will Continue, Thomson Reuters Issues Statement
UPDATED Nov 22: We’ve updated this post (below) with a statement that Thomson Reuters will be sending to Web of Science customers today re: access to discovery services and the introduction of a relationship with Google (Google Scholar to be precise) that was first announced by Outsell at this year’s Charleston Conference. We are also working on a story about Google Scholar/Web of Science integration for next week.
—-
If you’ve seen tweets that EDS would no longer would provide access to Web of Science for mutual customers this is incorrect.
Here’s a new tweet from EBSCO confirming.
We have confirmed with Thomson Reuters that EBSCO Discovery Service will continue to provide access to Web of Science for mutual customers.
— EBSCO (@EBSCO) November 21, 2013
Update: Summon has also confirmed they will continue to provide access.
Here’s what was posted on a Summon discussion list:
We are pleased to report that we are working on an agreement with Thomson Reuters to continue to provide Web of Science content to our mutual customers. Thomson Reuters and ProQuest recognize the value libraries receive from the integration of Web of Science in the Summon service and we are happy to see this relationship continue.
Full Text of Letter from Thomson Reuters re: Discovery Service Access to Web of Science (Nov. 22)
Dear [CUSTOMER],
Thomson Reuters continues innovation in the Web of Science with easier access, easier research discovery and better research tools. Starting January 2014, we will launch a collaboration with Google Scholar to facilitate the seamless movement to and from Web of Science. Our next generation interface (which also launches January 2014) will provide easier access to the broadest set of citation content available, and a better search experience for researchers and students at all levels.
Thomson Reuters will continue to respond to customer and user preferences by providing access from both library and open web environments. We have been in the process of evaluating our relationships with the three major discovery service providers [EBSCO/Proquest/Ex-Libris] and have decided to continue the indexing of Web of Science in them.
As with all third-party content relationships, we continually evaluate the intermediary representation of our content to ensure it is delivering value to our customers and end-users. Thomson Reuters is committed to working with [EBSCO/Proquest/Ex-Libris] and our customers to demonstrate the value of Web of Science to end-users.
We recognize and support library initiatives to create a single entry point for all library resources.
As such, we are actively supporting and accommodating access to Web of Science with a range of approaches including:
- Links from Google Scholar for existing Web of Science customers
- Discovery Services
- Federated Search and/or database recommenders which can be configured in partnership with your Discovery Services provider
- Direct Links to Web of Science
- Web of Science search box
We look forward to sharing the next generation Web of Science with you.
Kind regards
[Name]
Note: We have asked Thomson Reuters if they will share any info about their change in plans to continue providing access via discovery services (for mutual customers).
If/when we hear back we will update.
Filed under: EBSCO, Ex Libris, Libraries, News, Patrons and Users

About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.