Acquisition, serials and international exchange department
The main activity of the specialists in the Acquisition Department is the acquisition (selection, provision, replenishment) by purchase, mandatory deposit, exchange and donation of documents for the system of library funds in the library – Archive of the Bulgarian Book, basic, available and specialized funds. All types of information carriers – books, continuing editions, graphics, cartographic publications, printed music, patents and standards, functional and small editions, audiovisual documents, documentary and photo materials, microforms, electronic resources. There is a search, selection, qualitative assessment, availability check, consultations with referees and decision-making for the acquisition of documents. Retrospective addition of title-misses is also performed. There is a targeted policy for a planned and balanced construction and maintenance of the individual collections in order to achieve the optimal proportions of the unified library fund. An important part of its formation is accomplished thanks to donations from readers, authors, publishers and various organizations. The Library follows its Donorship Policy. For every donation gesture, the donor receives a special certificate.
The “Continuing Issues” section completes periodicals by purchase, mandatory deposit, exchange and donation. Annually, subscriptions are made in Bulgarian and foreign languages, which provide a rich selection of newspapers and magazines, satisfying the needs of all user groups.
The electronic catalog of the continuing editions in Bulgarian is available. Databases are maintained for current daily journals, which provide readers with information about the issues received for each title. Continuing editions are only available in the Library rooms of the library.
The IVNL provides annually free access to EBSCO's multidisciplinary “Academic Search Complete” database containing more than 8,500 full-text journals for its readers.
With the creation of the Digital Center, work began on a long-term digitization program for continuing editions. The number of accessible online digitized titles is steadily increasing.
The Plovdiv National Library maintains exchange links with 30 libraries from different countries: Belarus, Latvia, France, Germany, the United States, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Serbia, Ukraine, Macedonia, Turkey, Greece, Russia, Romania. Especially valuable are the exchange links with some of the world's largest libraries such as the Washington Library, USA and the German National Library in Leipzig, Germany. By means of book exchange with partner libraries, the Plovdiv National Library has acquired in its fund extremely valuable and expensive publications – medical atlases, notes, photographic albums, historical studies. Books provided through book exchange are new and up-to-date titles printed by leading foreign publishers. Through the exchange the fund of the continuing publications with popular foreign periodicals such as “Bohemica Litteraria”, “Opera”, “Contemporary Literature”, “Archeographic Annexes”, “Vostok”, “Вопросы литературы”, etc.
The Ivan Vazov National Library performs the functions of the second national repository of Bulgarian literature. Pursuant to the Law on the Compulsory Deposit of Printed and Other Works, it receives one free copy of each newly published title on the book market in the country. Along with the National Library and one of the other libraries in the country, since 1897 it receives a full deposit. It is used by readers only in the reading rooms of the Library.