BIBCO’s primary mission is to increase the timely availability of high-quality catalog records for monographs. The program seeks growth and diversity among libraries that contribute to the pool of BIBCO records. Participants apply shared standards with flexibility. The PCC embraces a variety of recognized classification and subject heading standards and encourages contributions from various libraries around the world via the major bibliographic utilities. The goal is to make participation both cost-effective and attractive for libraries, and to increase the utility of the records worldwide.
PCC records are dynamic. An institution creates an original record, meeting or exceeding the PCC BIBCO Record Standards. Another BIBCO institution may enrich an existing PCC record by adding access points, subject headings or classification numbers from a different scheme, or more notes. The focus of such enrichment is not to create the fullest possible record, but rather to add those notes or access points that provide appropriate access within the collection of the enriching library. The resulting record in a shared database serves the larger library community as well.