The 12th International ISMN Panel Meeting took place in Berlin on May 3, 2004, by invitation of the International ISMN Agency. The venue was the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin Preußischer Kulturbesitz.

In a round table discussion ("The First Ten Years of the ISMN. Retrospects and Prospects"), music librarians, music publishers and ISMN representatives critically reviewed the progress the ISMN has been made during the last decade. In two major contributions, Brian Chesser and Berit Holth informed about music databases, catalogues and Internet applications at the British Library and in Norway respectively. Will the ISBN standard revision necessitate a major change of the ISMN as well? It was discussed if - like ISBN - the ISMN should change to 13 digits using the EAN prefix 979 in order to harmonize the two similar identification systems and avoid practical problems. The participants consented unanimously in favour of this proposal.

Post-panel activities on May 4 included a guided tour of the Deutsche Musikarchiv (DMA) in Berlin and the German National Broadcasting Archives (Deutsches Rundfunkarchiv, DRA). For a detailed report about the meeting's presentations and discussions in ISMN Newsletter No. 14 click here. For a picture gallery click here.