Various XML-based approaches aimed at representing compound digital assetshave emerged over the last several years. Approaches that are of specificrelevance to the digital library community include the Metadata Encoding andTransmission Standard (METS), the IMS Content Packaging XML Binding, and theXML Formatted Data Units (XFDU) developed by CCSDS Panel 2. The MPEG-21 DigitalItem Declaration (MPEG-21 DID) is another standard specifying therepresentation of digital assets in XML that, so far, has received littleattention in the digital library community. This article gives a brief insightinto the MPEG-21 standardization effort, highlights the major characteristicsof the MPEG-21 DID Abstract Model, and describes the MPEG-21 Digital ItemDeclaration Language (MPEG-21 DIDL), an XML syntax for the representation ofdigital assets based on the MPEG-21 DID Abstract Model. Also, it brieflydemonstrates the potential relevance of MPEG-21 DID to the digital librarycommunity by describing its use in the aDORe repository environment at theResearch Library of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) for therepresentation of digital assets.
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