Towards a new relevance for research libraries

The invention of printing in 1455 by Johann Gutenberg and the invention of the World Wide Web in 1991 by Tim Berners-Lee have often been compared when it comes to making knowledge accessible. Both events marked a breakthrough with far-reaching social consequences. The printing press led to the disappearance of monastic libraries and their scriptoriums as sources of knowledge, to make way for university libraries and publishers. Will now the Web absorb the libraries? With exception of the cultural heritage libraries, the classical university libraries (with their stacks, catalogues and reference librarians) were marginalized by the digital revolution. If they are able to metamorphose into open agencies for scholarly information services, they will have a future again