5.1 Introduction

The approach to the delivery of metadata about releases and the resource files that make up these releases by a record company or distributor to a DSP using web services defined in this part of the ERN standard is asymmetric. Therefore, only record companies or distributors need to publish and maintain a web service. DSPs will then be able to call the web service using a web service client and thus effect the subsequent delivery of the metadata and resource files.

As a consequence it is the DSP that determines the point in time when the communication takes place. So, when the DSP is able or interested in receiving metadata and resource files, it can call the record company or distributor’s web service. It is then the responsibility of the record company or distributor to ensure delivery to the DSP of the appropriate metadata and resource files.

A further consequence of this approach is that the capacity management lies with the record company or distributor, who may need to be able to satisfy concurrent (or near concurrent) web server client requests from multiple DSPs. The number and frequency of such web server client requests is likely to vary significantly over time and record companies or distributors are advised to ensure their infrastructure can accommodate such variations.