ISKO
ISKO is a private international scholarly society serving approximately 600 members across 11 regional chapters, publishing the Knowledge Organization journal, the IEKO Encyclopedia, and the AKO proceedings series for researchers in information science, library science, and related disciplines.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1989
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What ISKO does
ISKO (International Society for Knowledge Organization) is a private, membership-based international scholarly society founded in 1989 in Germany and re-incorporated in Toronto, Canada in 2020. It serves approximately 600 members across 11 regional chapters spanning Brazil, Canada/US, China, France, DACH, Italy, Maghreb, Poland, Iberia, and the UK, drawing professionals from information science, library studies, philosophy, linguistics, computer science, and specialized domains such as health informatics. ISKO operates as a learned society rather than a commercial enterprise, with a Board of Directors, Scientific and Technical Advisory Council (STAC), and editorial boards governing its publications and events.
The society's core product portfolio centers on scholarly publishing and community platforms. Its flagship is the Knowledge Organization journal (JIF 0.6 in 2023), published eight times per year and transitioned to IMR Press in Hong Kong from 2025 in digital-only, open-access format. Complementary offerings include the freely available ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization (IEKO), the Advances in Knowledge Organization (AKO) peer-reviewed proceedings series, the KO Literature Database (records from 1988 onward), monograph and textbook series, the ISKO-L electronic mailing list, and biennial international conferences rotating across member regions (most recently Wuhan 2024, scheduled São Paulo 2026).
ISKO's revenue model is subscription-driven and diversified across individual, student, retired, and institutional membership tiers priced in CAD (CAD 30-200/year, with developing-country discounts), supplemented by article processing charges (APCs) for the open-access journal, conference registration fees, and publication sales through Nomos eLibrary and IMR Press. Membership is processed through regional chapters, which retain a portion of dues and remit the remainder to the international secretariat. The society maintains cooperative relationships with UNESCO, the European Commission, ISO (including TC37/SC3 on terminology), IFLA, DCMI, NKOS, and ASIS&T SIG/CR, reinforcing its standards and metadata ecosystem positioning.
ISKO firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ISKO
- Legal name
- International Society for Knowledge Organization
- Website
- https://isko.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1989
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- ISKO is a private international scholarly society serving approximately 600 members across 11 regional chapters, publishing the Knowledge Organization journal, the IEKO Encyclopedia, and the AKO proceedings series for researchers in information science, library science, and related disciplines.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ISKO industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Scholarly Society Services
- NAICS
- Business Associations (813910), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Libraries and Archives (51921)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing (MPAJABAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB), Knowledge Management & KCS Programs (BPAEAJAJ)
Keywords
Where ISKO is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
ISKO business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Membership Dues: ISKO generates revenue primarily through annual membership fees collected via regional chapters. Membership fees are set in CAD and vary by category (individual, student, retired, institutional). A portion of chapter dues is remitted to the international secretariat.
- Journal Publication Fees: Article Processing Charges (APC) are paid by authors or their funding bodies/institutions for publishing in Knowledge Organization journal. ISKO members receive free publishing (up to 25 articles per membership year) with 40% discount beyond that limit.
- Conference Registration: Revenue from registration fees for international and regional conferences organized by ISKO and its chapters. Discounts on participation are available to members.
- Publication Sales: 20% discounts on ISKO publications and library/information science titles published by Ergon Verlag. The Advances in Knowledge Organization (AKO) series and other monographs are sold through Nomos eLibrary.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Membership - Standard |
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Membership - Developing Countries |
| Subscription | Annual | Student Membership |
| Subscription | Annual | Retired Membership - Standard |
| Subscription | Annual | Retired Membership - Developing Countries |
| Subscription | Annual | Institutional Membership - Standard |
| Subscription | Annual | Institutional Membership - Developing Countries |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Article Processing Charge (APC) - Non-members |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Article Processing Charge (APC) - ISKO Members |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
ISKO product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ISKO is a membership-based international scholarly society that promotes research, development, and application of knowledge organization systems. It sells annual memberships (individual, student, retired, institutional tiers) that grant access to the Knowledge Organization journal (published eight times per year, open-access), the ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization (IEKO), conference proceedings, and regional chapter activities. The society also generates revenue through article processing charges, conference registration fees, and sales of monographs and proceedings volumes.
Product overview
ISKO (International Society for Knowledge Organization) is a premier international scholarly society rather than a technology product company. Its offerings consist of knowledge organization publications and community platforms: the Knowledge Organization (KO) Journal published eight times annually; the ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization (IEKO) as an open-access online resource; the Advances in Knowledge Organization (AKO) series containing peer-reviewed conference proceedings; the KO Literature Database for research; Textbooks for Knowledge Organization monographs; regional conference programs through its international chapters; and the ISKO-L mailing list community platform. These publications and resources serve researchers and professionals in library science, information science, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science rather than functioning as a commercial software product.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- IEKO (ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization): The online encyclopedia of knowledge organization published by ISKO, freely available online, with Birger Hjørland as editor-in-chief.
- Advances in Knowledge Organization (AKO)
- KO Literature Database
Products and services
- Knowledge Organization Journal (KO) The official journal of ISKO, published eight times per year in open-access digital format. Covers theoretical foundations, practical operations of indexing and classification, history of knowledge organization, classification education, and terminology. Available worldwide free of charge with Article Processing Charges paid by authors or their funding bodies.
- ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization (IEKO) A comprehensive online encyclopedia freely available to the public, covering knowledge organization topics including theoretical concepts, knowledge organizing systems (KOS), knowledge organizing processes, methods and approaches, and applications across different contexts.
- Advances in Knowledge Organization (AKO) Series An official publication series presenting peer-reviewed proceedings of biennial international ISKO conferences, showcasing original contributions on classification systems, ontologies, thesauri, metadata structures, indexing languages, and innovations in digital knowledge representation.
- ISKO International and Regional Conferences International conferences held in even-numbered years (most recently Wuhan 2024; next São Paulo 2026) and regional chapter conferences in odd-numbered years, with proceedings published in the AKO series.
- KO Literature Database A searchable database of knowledge organization literature spanning from 1988 to present, with classified records covering classification systems, indexing, terminology, and information retrieval.
- Textbooks for Knowledge Organization monograph series A monograph series covering subject analysis, classificatory structures, and knowledge organization development and application, sold via partner distribution (Ergon Verlag, Nomos eLibrary).
- Knowledge Organization in Subject Areas (KOSA) A regional proceedings series published in collaboration with Ergon Verlag, covering domain-specific knowledge organization research.
- ISKO Membership Annual membership providing access to the Knowledge Organization journal, conference participation discounts, publication discounts, and regional chapter activities, available in individual (CAD 100), student (CAD 30), retired (CAD 50), and institutional (CAD 200) tiers, with reduced rates for developing countries.
Companies that use ISKO
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
ISKO technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
ISKO partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- UNESCOcoreISKO cooperates with UNESCO as part of its mission to connect with international institutions working on knowledge organization and related fields.
- European CommissioncoreISKO maintains cooperation with the European Commission on matters related to knowledge organization and information processing.
- ISO (International Organization for Standardization)coreISKO works with ISO including its Working Group on Terminology Extraction (ISO/TC37/SC3 - Management of Terminology Resources).
- DCMI (Dublin Core Metadata Initiative)coreISKO has established links with DCMI for cooperation on metadata standards and knowledge organization systems interoperability.
- IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions)coreISKO cooperates with IFLA, particularly with the Section on Subject Analysis and Access, on matters of mutual interest in classification and subject access.
- ASIS&T SIG/CR (Special Interest Group on Classification Research)coreISKO has established links with the Classification Research Special Interest Group of the American Society for Information Science and Technology.
- NKOS (Networked Knowledge Organization Systems/Services)coreISKO maintains links with NKOS, a network focused on networked knowledge organization systems and services, including semantic web applications.
- Infoterm (International Information Centre for Terminology)minorISKO has established links with Infoterm, the International Information Centre for Terminology, for cooperation on terminology standards.
- IMR PresscoreFrom 2025, the Knowledge Organization journal is published by IMR Press (Hong Kong) in digital-only format, replacing Ergon Verlag which merged into Nomos Verlag in 2017.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
ISKO competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- ASIS&T (Association for Information Science and Technology): ASIS&T is the leading generalist scholarly society for information science and technology. ISKO has a direct partnership with ASIS&T's SIG/CR (Classification Research), making them closely aligned in member base, conference activities, and journal publishing in overlapping subfields.
- DCMI (Dublin Core Metadata Initiative): DCMI is an organization advancing interoperable metadata standards, with a strong focus on knowledge organization systems. ISKO has established mutual cooperation with DCMI, and the two organizations serve overlapping communities of metadata and classification researchers.
- NKOS (Networked Knowledge Organization Systems/Services): NKOS is a network focused on networked KOS and semantic web applications. ISKO maintains mutual cooperation with NKOS, and both target the same intersection of knowledge organization, ontologies, and applied metadata research.
- SLA (Special Libraries Association): SLA is a global organization for information professionals in specialized settings. It shares with ISKO a focus on knowledge organization, taxonomy, and classification practices used by working information professionals.
- ALISE (Association for Library and Information Science Education): ALISE represents educators in library and information science. Its member base and conference programming overlap directly with ISKO's academic audience, particularly in classification, indexing, and knowledge organization pedagogy.
Broad incumbents
- IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions): IFLA is a much larger international body representing library associations worldwide. ISKO cooperates with IFLA's Section on Subject Analysis and Access, and the two serve overlapping library and information science constituencies with ISKO as a more specialized niche player.
- ALA (American Library Association): ALA is the largest library association in the United States, with thousands of members. ISKO overlaps with ALA in classification and cataloging interests but operates as a much more specialized international scholarly society.
- ACM (Association for Computing Machinery): ACM is a much larger computing society that includes significant work on ontologies, knowledge representation, and the Semantic Web. ISKO's computer science members often publish in ACM venues, making it an adjacent incumbent in a broader field.
- IEEE Computer Society: IEEE Computer Society covers computing research including knowledge-based systems, ontologies, and information retrieval. It is a far larger incumbent serving overlapping technical communities, particularly in computer science applications of knowledge organization.
Regional players
- ICA (International Council on Archives): ICA is an international professional body focused on archives and records management. It overlaps with ISKO in archival description, classification standards, and authority control, but its primary membership is archivists rather than knowledge organization researchers.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
ISKO social profiles
Digital presenceISKO financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ISKO leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
ISKO funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ISKO M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ISKO
What does ISKO do?
ISKO is a membership-based international scholarly society that promotes research, development, and application of knowledge organization systems. It sells annual memberships (individual, student, retired, institutional tiers) that grant access to the Knowledge Organization journal (published eight times per year, open-access), the ISKO Encyclopedia of Knowledge Organization (IEKO), conference proceedings, and regional chapter activities. The society also generates revenue through article processing charges, conference registration fees, and sales of monographs and proceedings volumes.
Is ISKO a public or private company?
ISKO is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was ISKO founded?
ISKO was founded in 1989. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is ISKO based?
ISKO is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does ISKO make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Membership Dues are the primary driver. The others are journal Publication Fees, conference Registration and publication Sales.
Who are ISKO's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are ASIS&T (Association for Information Science and Technology), DCMI (Dublin Core Metadata Initiative), NKOS (Networked Knowledge Organization Systems/Services), SLA (Special Libraries Association) and ALISE (Association for Library and Information Science Education). Broad incumbents are IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions), ALA (American Library Association), ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) and IEEE Computer Society. ICA (International Council on Archives) is listed as a regional player.
Does ISKO have an API?
No public API is recorded for ISKO.
What industry is ISKO in?
ISKO's product category is Scholarly Society Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJABAK, Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing, with a secondary code of BPADANAB, Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels. Its NAICS code is 813910 and its SIC code is 8600.