Transition to Thema: what you need to know
In February 2022, BIC announced that the BIC subject category scheme will become obsolete in February 2024. This doesn't mean those codes will cease to function overnight, but it is being phased out in favour of Thema.
We understand the scale of this change, and our goal is to make this transition as straightforward as possible.
Based on feedback from publishers and booksellers, TitlePage and the APA are adopting a flexible approach to ensure a smooth transition to Thema.
TitlePage translation
TitlePage will play a pivotal role by automatically translating BIC categories to Thema as we receive records without native Thema classifications.
This translation development is complete, and TitlePage now translates BIC to Thema for any record provided without native Thema. This translated Thema can be provided to you for ingestion into your systems to populate backlists.
The gradual rollout will ensure a seamless transition and avoid impact to TitlePage performance, while enabling retailers to use Thema alongside BIC sooner.
Explore training & resources
The APA has coordinated Thema training workshops with EDItEUR in early 2024. Learn more and book here,or express your interest for future sessions and we will schedule more based on demand.
Further training resources are available here:
You can also find answers to Frequently Asked Questions regarding this transition, which will be updated throughout the project.