Abstract
There is an increasing attention being paid to the problem of long-term digital preservation, and in particular that associated with “born digital” material. This paper was prepared in order to better understand the challenges, identify topics that need to be treated at a policy level, and prepare for a possible action package on the issue. The paper can be seen as a background document to a series of expert meeting that will be held during the year 2002, as such it is not written in a formal style, nor is it intended to have a persistent impact on the subject. The reader is encouraged to contact the author to obtain up-to-date information on the topic.
The overall topic of long-term preservation is a challenge in itself, however it has also been identified in an ongoing initiative sponsored by the European Commission concerning digitisation policies and programmes (see the Lund Conclusions,