Permanent Digital Object Identifiers
Digital object identifiers (DOIs) serve as unique and permanent identifiers for digital objects or documents. The use of DOIs promotes the reuse and correct citations of research datasets. In addition, DOIs facilitate the use of altmetric tools for monitoring the use of existing datasets.
DataCite DOI

Research data infrastructures affiliated with the University of Helsinki can add digital object identifiers (DOIs) to their datasets. The service is especially targeted at data repositories and databases that hold research data.

The use of DOIs is controlled by the International DOI Foundation and its licensed registration authorities. The University of Helsinki has signed a contract with DataCite, which is one of these authorities. DataCite is specialised in DOIs for research data. These identifiers utilise metadata standards especially designed for describing research data. If a dataset is assigned a DOI but its URL changes, the new should be updated to the existing DOI.
  • The dataset and its metadata must be located on a single landing page with a URL.
  • Minimum metadata from the dataset is saved to the DataCite service.
  • The URL address must be as permanent as possible.
  • If the dataset is deleted, the DOI must refer to a tombstone page, which states what has happened to the dataset.
  • The management of DOIs is done through application programming interfaces (APIs).

Datasets require at least the following metadata fields:

  • Identifier
  • Creator
  • Title
  • Publisher
  • Publication year
  • Resource type

Additional information on metadata: https://support.datacite.org/docs/metadata-quality

Metadata schema: https://schema.datacite.org/

Please contact Data Support: datasupport@helsinki.fi. In the message, please provide a link to your repository and give a rough estimate of how many DOIs you will need.

Together we will create a user account in DataCite’s DOI management application. The management of DOIs is done through application programming interfaces (APIs). The following APIs are supported:

In principle, Helsinki University Library covers the cost of DOIs. However, their management requires work and DataCite charges for individual DOIs. In cases where a single data repository uses several millions of DOIs per year, the costs must be negotiated case by case.