Metadata Template Requirements

  1. VitalSource Support
  2. Manage – Upload Files And Metadata
  3. Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting

Metadata Template Requirements

Below is the Metadata Template Requirements list.

Column Header System Name Required in Upload Description Examples of Good Data Examples of Common Bad Data
VBID isbn Yes

The VBID is typically an ISBN, preferably without dashes. This is the primary identifier for your book.

It should be alpha-numeric and less that 32 characters long. Hyphens are allowed.
  • 9781123456789
  • 9781-123-456-789
  • 1234567890xyz
  • thisTitleHasTooManyCharactersInIt
  • 9781 123 456 789 (spaces)
  • 9781-123-456-789-# (special character)
  • 9.78112+12
Title title Yes Enter your book's title. If the book includes a subtitle, use a colon to separate it from the title.
  • My Great Title
  
Imprint imprint Yes

Enter the exact name of the Imprint in the VST Manage system, into which this book will reside. You also can enter the Manage Imprint ID.

See your VST Customer Success contact to get the correct value.
  • 1234
  • My Imprint Name
  • Mu Mispelled Inprint
Kind kind  

Enter the type of asset you intend to create.

If you do not choose a value when creating an asset, we will assume a kind of "book". Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Book
  • Chapter

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)
  • eBook
Print ISBN print isbn Yes

Enter an ISBN10 or ISBN13.

This should be the ISBN of the print version of this book. It does not have to be unique, as there could be several different electronic representations of the same print book.
  • 9781123456789
  • 9781-123-456-789
  • 9.78112+12
  • Not an ISBN
E ISBN eisbn  

Enter an ISBN10 or ISBN13.

This should be the ISBN of the eBook. Typically it is the same as the VBID without hyphens.

If you don't choose a value when creating an asset, the VBID will be used to populate this field. Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • 9781123456789
  • 9.78112+12
  • Not an ISBN
Author Name author name Yes Enter the full name of the author or authors of the resource. Separate authors with commas.
  • John Smith
  • Sarah P. Greene
  • Julian S. Daniels, Cara de Lune
  • Ronald Aaron Williams III
  • None
  • N/A
First Name author first name   Enter the first name of the primary author or first listed author.
  • John
  • None
  • N/A
Last Name author last name Yes Enter the last name of the primary author or first listed author.
  • Smith
  • None
  • N/A
Edition edition Yes

Enter the edition/version number of your resource. It should be in the form of a number, such as "3" and not text, such as "Third".

Edition numbers must be between 0 and 127.
  • 1
  • 5
  • First
  • 2018
  • 1st
Language language   Enter the language of the book. This can be in the form of a three-letter language code or the exact text of the language in the Mange system. See the Validation tab for valid values.
  • ENG
  • English

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)
  • EN
Description description Yes Enter a short summary for the book. Do not include line breaks.    
Copyright Date copyright date   Enter the year the work was copyrighted. This should be a four-digit year.
  • 2018
  • 1995
  • 06/2018
  • '18
  • 08/01/2007
Publication Date publication date Yes Enter the month and year that this edition/version of the resource was first used. Format should be mm/yyyy.
  • 08/2007
  • 01/08/2007
  • MAR 2007
  • March, 2007
On-Sale Date on sale date   Enter the date on which VitalSource can begin selling this book. Format should be mm/dd/yyyy.
  • 01/01/2019
  • Jan. 1, 2019
  • 01/2019
Off-Sale Date off sale date   Enter the date on which VitalSource should stop selling this book. Format should be mm/dd/yyyy.
  • 01/01/2019
  • Jan. 1, 2019
  • 01/2019
Parent Asset parent isbn   If this asset is a chapter, this column is used to relate the chapter to it's parent book if it exists in Manage.    
BISAC bisac   BISAC codes can be used to categorize your content, and it's recommended to set these if you're selling through the VitalSource stores. You can apply more than one BISAC code in a comma-separated list. See the Validation tab for valid values.
  • MED008000
  • MED016010, FAM000000, MED044000

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)
  • Psychology
Exclusive Sales Rights exclusive rights   Enter comma separated region codes denoting where the agent has exclusive sales rights to the title.
  • World
  • US
  • US, CA, UK, AU

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)

  
Non-Exclusive Sales Rights non exclusive rights  

Enter comma separated region codes denoting where the agent has non-exclusive sales rights to the title.

If you do not choose a value when creating an asset, a value of 2 will be used. Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • World
  • US
  • US, CA, UK, AU

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)

  
No Sales Rights no rights  

Enter comma separated region codes denoting where the agent has no sales rights to the title.

If you do not choose a value when creating an asset, a value of 2 will be used. Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • US
  • US, CA, UK, AU

(See Validation Tab in spreadsheet for list of accepted values)

  
Sampling Allowed(Yes|No) sampling allowed   Yes or No. If yes, this asset is available for free to verified instructors through the VST Sampling Portal. If you make no selection, your company's default sampling settings will be used.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
Fulfillment Only(Yes|No) fulfillment only   Yes or No. If yes, VST will not put this book in it's retail or wholesale channels. The only way this book will be distributed is manually by the content owner. If you make no selection, Fulfillment Only defaults to "no."
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0

Faculty Review Only(Yes|No)

 faculty review only   Yes or No. If yes, VST will not put this book in it's retail or wholesale channels. However, it will be available in the VST Sampling channels if Sampling is allowed. If you make no selection, Faculty Review Online defaults to "no."
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
Copy DRM Limit copy drm  

Enter the number of pages that a user should be able to copy from your resource at one time.

This helps prevent others from copying your resources text to "steal" your content.
  • 2
  • 10
  • -1
  • No
  • 1
  • 0
Print DRM Limit print drm  

Enter the number of pages that a user should be able to print from your resource at one time.

This helps prevent others from making their own print copies.
  • 2
  • 10
  • -1
  • No
  • 1
  • 0
USD Print List Price Single-Print List Price-USD   Enter the list price of the print version of this book in US Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 USD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
USD Digital List Price Single-Digital List Price-USD   Enter the list price for perpetual access to this digital book in US Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 USD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
In US Store
(Yes|No)		 in store Yes Yes or No. Unlike the other store settings this is a required field. Yes means a perpetual license to this content can be sold via VST's US store (and various other international stores where the asset's sales rights and VST's contracts with the content owner allow).
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
GBP Digital List Price Single-Digital List Price-GBP   Enter the list price for perpetual access to this digital book in British Pounds. Do not include a pound sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 GBP
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
In UK Store
(Yes|No)		 in uk store  

Yes or No. Defaults to no.

Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
AUD Digital List Price Single-Digital List Price-AUD   Enter the list price for perpetual access to this digital book in Australian Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 AUD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
In AU Store
(Yes|No)		 in au store  

Yes or No. Defaults to no.

Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
CAD Digital List Price Single-Digital List Price-CAD   Enter the list price for perpetual access to this digital book in Canadian Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 CAD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
EUR Digital List Price Single-Digital List Price-EUR   Enter the list price for perpetual access to this digital book in Euros. Do not include a currency marker. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 EUR
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
X-Day Rental USD DLP RX-Digital List Price-USD   Enter the list price for an X-day access to this digital book in US Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 USD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
X-Day Rental in US Store
(Yes|No)		 x day rental in us store  

Yes or No. Defaults to no.

Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
X-Day Rental GBP DLP RX-Digital List Price-GBP   Enter the list price for an X-day access to this digital book in British Pounds. Do not include a pound sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 GBP
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
X-Day Rental in UK Store
(Yes|No)		 X day rental in uk store  

Yes or No. Defaults to no.

Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
X-Day Rental AUD DLP RX-Digital List Price-AUD   Enter the list price an X-day access to this digital book in Australian Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 AUD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
X-Day Rental in AU Store
(Yes|No)		 X day rental in au store  

Yes or No. Defaults to no.

Subsequent updates will respect existing values.
  • Yes
  • No
  • True
  • False
  • 1
  • 0
  • $15
X-Day Rental  CAD DLP RX-Digital List Price-CAD   Enter the list price for an X-day access to this digital book in Canadian Dollars. Do not include a dollar sign. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 CAD
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA
X-Day Rental  EUR DLP RX-Digital List Price-EUR   Enter the list price for an X-day access to this digital book in Euros. Do not include a currency marker. If there is no price, leave this blank. Do not put in "0.00" unless the book is actually free.
  • 10
  • 10.00
  • $12
  • 12.00 EUR
  • 0 (Probably not what you mean)
  • NA