Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn

What Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn does

Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn (the National and University Library of Iceland) is the Icelandic state's statutory national library and the library of the University of Iceland, operating under Act No. 142/2011 from its headquarters at Arngrímsgata 3, Reykjavík, with branch operations in the Faculty of Law Library (Lögberg) and the Health Sciences Library at Landspítali (Eirberg). The institution collects and preserves all Icelandic publications through legal deposit under Act No. 20/2002, maintains the country's union catalog (Gegnir, an Icelandic implementation of Ex Libris Alma with MARC 21 and Danish Dewey customisations), and assigns ISBN, ISSN, ISMN, and DOI identifiers to Icelandic publishers. Its core assets include the 180-year-old Manuscript Collection (≈15,000 manuscripts and ≈1,300 private archives), the Women's History Archives, the National Collection of all Iceland-printed material, and the Audio-Visual Collection.

Service delivery combines physical infrastructure (the four-floor Þjóðarbókhlaðan building with 430+ reading seats, 26 scholar reading rooms, 4 group study rooms, rental lecture halls and classrooms) with an extensive digital platform portfolio: Rafhlaðan (legal-deposit electronic archive), Skemman (theses repository), Opin vísindi (open-access research), Leitir.is (unified search), Hvar.is (national electronic-subscriptions consortium), IRIS (research-information portal), Bækur.is, Tímarit.is, Handrit.is, Hljóðsafn.is, Íslandskort.is, Ísmús, and Leiðarvísar (LibGuides), alongside interlibrary-loan services and a course-reserve system.

The business model is overwhelmingly government-funded (Icelandic state appropriations plus a cooperation agreement with the University of Iceland), supplemented by modest user fees: an ISK 3,000 annual library card for the general public (free for UI students/staff), interlibrary-loan charges (ISK 2,300–5,300 per item), facility rentals (lecture hall ISK 75,000/day; reading room ISK 12,000–18,000/month), printing, and overdue/lost-material fines. The institution has ~18 staff and is governed by a board chaired by Fanny Gunnarsdóttir (2023–2027 term), with Örn Hrafnkelsson serving as National Librarian.

Name

Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn

Legal name

Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn

Website

https://landsbokasafn.is

Company type

Private

Founded year

1846

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn is Iceland's national and University of Iceland library, operating under Act No. 142/2011 to preserve Icelandic cultural heritage through legal deposit, assign ISBN/ISSN identifiers, and serve students, researchers, and the general public via collections, digital archives, and interlibrary loans.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Libraries and Archives (519210), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

akta.pro primary industry

Academic & Research Library Operations (College/University Libraries) (EDAEAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Archives, Special Collections & Preservation Operations (Rare Materials, Conservation) (EDAEAGAJ), Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing) (EDAEAGAF), Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF), Public Libraries & Information Services (BPAIACAO)

Keywords

• National library services
• Academic library resources
• Legal deposit collection
• Interlibrary loan services
• Digital archive preservation

Headquarters

HQ city

Reykjavik

HQ country

Iceland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: As Iceland's national library and university library, the institution is primarily funded through government appropriations and the University of Iceland cooperation agreement.
2. Library Card Fees: Annual library card fee of ISK 3,000 for general public. Free for University of Iceland students and staff.
3. Facility Rental: Revenue from renting lecture halls (ISK 75,000/day), classrooms (ISK 6,000/hour), and reading rooms (ISK 15,000/12,000 per month).
4. Interlibrary Loan Fees: Fees charged to other libraries for interlibrary loan services: ISK 3,800 for Nordic books, ISK 5,300 for international books, ISK 2,300 for Icelandic books.
5. Printing and Photocopying: Black and white A4 printing at ISK 30, color A4 at ISK 60, digital images at ISK 12,500 each.
6. Late Fines and Replacement Fees: Daily fines for overdue materials (ISK 70 for regular books, ISK 650 for audiovisual), minimum ISK 10,000 for lost publications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn operates as Iceland's national library and the library of the University of Iceland, providing both national cultural heritage preservation and academic library services. The institution collects and preserves all Icelandic publications through legal deposit under Act No. 20/2002, assigns ISBN/ISSN/ISMN/DOI identifiers, coordinates the national Gegnir cataloging system, and provides access to physical and digital collections, interlibrary loans, research support, reading rooms, and manuscript archives.

Product overview

Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn is Iceland's national library and university library, operating as a single institution providing both national cultural heritage preservation and academic library services. The portfolio includes: digital archives (Bækur.is for historical books, Tímarit.is for newspapers/journals, Handrit.is for manuscripts, Hljóðsafn.is for audio, Íslandskort.is for maps, Skemman.is for theses, Rafhlaðan for legal deposit materials, Opin vísindi for open science); research tools (Leitir.is integrated search portal, Leiðarvísar.is subject guides, Hvar.is for database access, IRIS research portal, Lykilskrá subject index, Ísmús music database); the Gegnir cataloging system; physical services (Millisafnalán interlibrary loans, Námsbókasafn course reserves, reading rooms, group study rooms); special collections (Manuscript Collection, Women's History Archives, Icelandic National Collection, Audio-visual Collection); and administrative services (ISBN/ISSN/DOI assignment, legal deposit). The library serves as the national library of Iceland, collecting and preserving all Icelandic publications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Interlibrary Loan Service (Millisafnalán) Fee-based service that provides books and journal articles from other university and research libraries to Icelandic library users and partner libraries. Fees: ISK 3,800 per Nordic book, ISK 5,300 per international book, ISK 2,300 per Icelandic book, with 50% discount for University of Iceland students and staff.
• Course Reserve Service (Námsbókasafn) Service providing course reserve materials for University of Iceland courses, with materials placed for on-site use or loaned for one to fourteen days during the course duration.
• Manuscript Collection (Handritasafn) Special collection of approximately 15,000 manuscripts and 1,300 private archives, accessible via the reading room. Materials retrieved from secure storage twice daily for scholars and researchers.
• Iceland National Collection (Íslandssafn) Collection of all materials printed in Iceland since the beginning of printing, plus foreign material concerning Iceland and Icelanders, collected through legal deposit obligations under Act No. 20/2002.
• Women's History Archives (Kvennasögusafn) Archive dedicated to recording, preserving, and collecting sources on women's history, the only archive of its kind in Iceland.
• Audio and Visual Collection (Hljóð- og myndsafn) Collection of Icelandic audio recordings, films, objects, photographs of Icelandic musicians, and oral history interviews.
• ISBN/ISSN/ISMN/DOI Assignment Service Service overseeing assignment of international identifiers for Icelandic publications: ISBN for books, ISSN for journals, ISMN for sheet music, and DOI for electronic articles. Provided free of charge to Icelandic publishers.
• Legal Deposit Service (Skylduskil) Statutory service ensuring preservation of all Icelandic publications through mandatory deposit of print and electronic materials from publishers, music labels, printing houses, and other producers under Act No. 20/2002.
• Reading Room Rental (Lesherbergi) 26 reading rooms on the 3rd and 4th floors available for rental by scholars, graduate students, and researchers. Pricing: ISK 15,000/month (winter), ISK 12,000/month (summer); ISK 18,000/month with computer (winter), ISK 15,000/month with computer (summer).
• Group Study Room Rental (Hópvinnuherbergi) Bookable group study rooms accommodating 3-10 people, available to university students and staff for collaborative work.
• Lecture Hall and Classroom Rental Rental of lecture halls (ISK 75,000 full day, ISK 45,000 half day, ISK 35,000 evening) and classrooms (ISK 6,000 per hour) in the National Library Building.
• Gegnir Cataloging System National union catalog system connecting all Icelandic libraries, providing bibliographic cataloging standards using MARC 21 format with Icelandic-specific modifications for personal name conventions, publication codes, and Danish Dewey classification.
• Leitir.is Integrated Search Portal Integrated search portal allowing users to search multiple electronic databases simultaneously, including the joint catalogue of Icelandic libraries, providing unified discovery across Icelandic library holdings.
• Hvar.is National Electronic Subscription Consortium Consortium website providing national access to electronic databases and journals for Icelandic academic and research institutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Legal deposit ensures comprehensive preservation of Icelandic cultural output for future generations
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Hvar.is ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational consortium for access to electronic databases and journals. The library serves as the national center managing subscriptions and access to electronic resources on behalf of Icelandic institutions.
• IRIS (Icelandic Research Information System)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch portal showing research activity of Icelandic universities and institutions that are members of the system.
• Gegnir Libraries (Landskerfi bókasafna)coreTechnology or IntegrationThe national union catalog connecting all Icelandic libraries. The library maintains and coordinates cataloging standards, subject headings, and authority records for the network.
• Faculty of Law, University of IcelandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe library operates the Faculty of Law Library on 3rd floor of Lögberg building, the largest law library in Iceland.
• Landspítali University HospitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint operation of the Health Sciences Library in Eirberg, serving both hospital staff and University of Iceland health sciences students and faculty.
• University of IcelandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormal cooperation and service agreement under Act No. 142/2011. The library serves as the university's library while also maintaining national library functions.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Ex Libris (Clarivate): Provider of the Alma library management system used by the library, as well as broader library technology infrastructure. Ecosystem participant rather than direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Library of Congress: The US national library and a broader incumbent performing legal deposit, national bibliography, and cultural heritage functions at much greater scale. Comparable in mandate structure though operating at vastly different scale.

Direct peers

• Det Kongelige Bibliotek (Royal Danish Library): Denmark's national library and a Nordic counterpart operating under similar legal deposit and university library cooperation frameworks. Closely comparable given shared Nordic institutional heritage and small-population operating model.
• National Library of Sweden (Kungliga biblioteket): Sweden's national library with comparable responsibilities for legal deposit, national bibliography, ISBN assignment, and academic library cooperation. Functions in a similarly small Nordic market with parallel mandate structure.
• British Library: The UK's national library, performing analogous functions: legal deposit collection, national bibliography, manuscript preservation, and digital scholarly infrastructure. Highly comparable as a national library serving both research and general public needs.
• Bodleian Libraries (University of Oxford): Major research university library system combining academic library functions with historic manuscript and special collections. Comparable dual role as both a university library and a heritage repository.
• National Library of Finland: Finland's national library sharing the Nordic small-country operating model, with analogous legal deposit, cultural heritage preservation, and digital repository functions.
• National Library of Norway: Norway's national library with parallel legal deposit, bibliographic coordination, and digital preservation mandates. Closely comparable given Nordic peer institutional model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCl3SsrPtMBkSdKirHno9DkQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/landsbokasafn
• Instagraminstagram.com/landsbokasafn
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/landsb%C3%B3kasafn-%C3%ADslands---h%C3%A1sk%C3%B3lab%C3%B3kasafn

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Landsbókasafn Íslands - Háskólabókasafn