Developments in European information issues: Networks and relays – Services – Products, June 1999

r.cade joins the Eurostat Data Shop Network

The Resource Centre for Access to Data on Europe (r.cade) established four years ago by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is based at the Centre for European Studies at the University of Durham. It aims to give researchers and analysts, from academia, central and local government and the private sector, access to statistical data about Europe collected by a range of organisations including Eurostat. Through negotiating access contracts, developing documentation about the data and offering delivery through a variety of electronic media, it has improved the accessibility of statistical information. From May r.cade has become part of the Eurostat Data Shop Network in partnership with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) so that there are now two UK representatives. While ONS deals with paper publications, r.cade handles the range of electronic products and deals with on-line or web subscriptions, sales of CD-ROMs and sections of the statistical databases such as Comext, and electronic publications such as Statistics in Focus available in PDF as well as paper. It handles ad hoc enquiries as well and will for example extract and supply Eurostat data not just by post or fax but by e-mail, on disk or on custom-made CD-ROMs for users who do not require regular access.