Practical information on ISSN, barcodes and EAN

ISSN consists of eight digits, the last of which is a control digit. ISSN must always be written in two groups, each of which consists of 4 digits with a hyphen in between and with the letters "ISSN" in front of the number groups as follows: ISSN 1234-5679.

The eighth digit is a control digit and has the function of revealing any potential miswritten numbers. The control digit is considered an essential and inseparable part of the number and is calculated on the basis of the other 7 digits according to "modulus 11 with weights 8-2". In cases where the calculations give control digit 10, use Roman numerals X instead.

ISSN is only an identification symbol, and unlike ISBN, ISSN has no other purpose than to be a unique identification of a periodical.

The ISSN assigned to a printed periodical must be printed on each booklet with the letters ISSN in front.

The number should be printed in a visible place, preferably in the upper right corner on the front of the cover. Especially in the case of journals.

Other suitable locations are on the back of the cover or in the colophon.

If the publication also has an ISBN, e.g. a year of an annual publication, both numbers must be printed in the same place, each with its own prefix. ISSNs assigned to CD-ROMs or floppy disks are placed both outside the CD-ROM or floppy disk as well as inside the file.

ISSNs assigned to web publications are placed in the electronic colophon.

You do not have to pay for your barcode number, but you must construct it yourself from ISSN as shown below:

EAN consists of the following figures:

1. The number 977 (the international term for periodicals)
2. The first seven digits of ISSN
3. Two digits, which are usually set to 00. These can, however, be used to indicate the price variant for special numbers or possibly to indicate the individual issues of a daily newspaper within a week.

Control digit calculated according to the following rules:

A .: All digits under even positions (2-4-6-8-10-12) are added.
B .: The sum A is multiplied by 3.
C .: All digits under odd positions (3-5-7-9-11-13) are added.
D .: The results in B and C are added.
E .: The control digit is the digit that added to result D gives a sum divisible by 10.

Example of control digit calculation for ISSN 1234-5679:

Positions: 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

EAN No .: 9 7 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 0 3

A. Digits under even positions are added: 7 + 1 + 3 + 5 + 7 + 0 = 23
B. Sum A A 3 -> 23 X 3 = 69
C. Digits under odd positions are added: 9 + 7 + 2 + 4 + 6 + 0 = 28
D. B + C -> 69 + 28 = 97
E. The control digit is then: 100 = 97+ 3
Note: The control digit may well be 0.

The additional code is placed to the right of the EAN and parallel to it.

As mentioned, the individual issues of a daily newspaper within a week must be included in the EAN 13.

If you want to specify individual sequences, they can be included in the additional code with two digits as follows:

A film must be made to print the barcode after.
EAN technical specifications must be followed.

• ISSN/EAN is printed with the barcode symbol

• Above the bar code, print ISSN with a hyphen after the 4th digit and precede ISSN with readable numbers. (ISSN 1234-5679)

• Under the barcode, print ISSN/EAN with readable numbers.

Technical information on printing, scanning and use can be found at GS1 Denmark.

The article number/EAN can be generated from the ISSN (International Standard Serial Number), which is given to newspapers, magazines, yearbooks and series (correspondingly ISBN is given to books). The international organisation ISSN Network, which administers the ISSN allocation, has agreements with the international product code organisation EAN (European Article Numbering) on ​​a free conversion of ISSN to EAN.

Barcodes help publishers and resellers to quickly get an overview of sales data, demand, etc.