By LJ Staff

Although OCLC has been busy acquiring new ventures in recent years, the organization has sold its MARS authority control service to Backstage Library Works, contending that the offline, standalone service proved a poor fit for its efforts to expand its WorldCat services. OCLC asserts that Backstage's acquisition ensures the service's continuity and expands that company's range of library records-handling offerings. The two parties are working in tandem for a smooth transition, and Backstage will honor existing contracts as well as adhere to the current pricing structure, software, and library profiles. John Merrill, Backstage's president, said that OCLC staffers are helping to "make sure the transition is seamless to MARS users." Backstage will restore the manual review service dropped by OCLC and will incorporate software updates and other improvements.