Toward the realization of a data-driven society, including the use of AI, and the transformation of science, society, and science and society that more inclusive open science aims to achieve, international movements such as UNESCO, G7, and OECD are gaining momentum, and research data infrastructure development, led by Europe, is progressing. This paper describes the current status of open science policy and domestic and international trends in the utilization of research data, with a focus on academic information distribution, and provides an outlook for academic information distribution services, including those related to reference services.

There are various kinds of data; numerical data, tables, images, videos, sounds, letters, mathematical formula, network-structure data for relationship representation. In old days, referencing is to search the source of searching information. However, to find out information itself directly is requested due to the recent drastic increase of digital information. Currently, satisfactory methods for effective data search from various kinds of huge information are not established. In this article, current status of data utilization and treatments for data utilization are briefly overviewed by taking examples from materials science field.

In this article, the role of the data curator is defined as “selecting useful data from the data produced by research, distributing them as FAIR data (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable data) so that they can be reused by third parties, and manage and preserve them for the long-term”. It also described the relationship between data curators, RDM services, and data librarians. Based on “Curating Research Data,” published by the Association of College and Research Libraries, the details of practices along the life cycle of data curation were presented. Considering the current situation in Japan, the author proposed that the data curation be divided among (1) subject specialists, (2) librarians, and (3) information technology specialists was proposed, and discussed the human resource development.

Public libraries, university libraries, and special libraries are expected to utilize digital data as well as printed materials in a society where DX is accelerating. Introducing the current status of e-books, e-journals, digital archives, web information resources, etc. that can be used in libraries. It also touches on open access, distribution mechanisms such as institutional repositories, and information technologies such as web-scale discovery services that support them. In addition, we will introduce the use of SNS and the unique information service of the corporate library. We will consider the role and challenges of how libraries should respond to the utilization of digital data.

“Big data” is a charming word. It has been the focus of much anticipation and attention with the extraordinary development of information technology, especially the Internet and storage devices. However, it has been recognized that the theory of data analysis, including statistics, is the key when it comes to actually utilizing big data. In other words, what is essential is not to deal with “big” data, but to utilize “data”. In order to make the best use of data, it is necessary to organize the concepts for handling data. In this paper, we deal with situations involving data, including inferential and descriptive statistics and their developed forms. Through this, we discuss ways to utilize data and make it useful in the real world.