International ISBN Agency

The International ISBN Agency, based in London, England, coordinates and manages the identification and description of monograph publications worldwide, using International Standard Book Numbers (ISBNs). The agency is the registration authority for the ISO 2108 standard that regulates ISBNs. It oversees 150 regional or national registration agencies that assign ISBNs to publishers in over 200 countries. For more information, refer to https://www.isbn-international.org/.

In the US, R.R. Bowker LLC is the national registration agency. Bowker is a private company, currently owned by Cambridge Information Group and based in New Jersey, that was established in 1868 and that is the exclusive US agent for issuing ISBNs. Additionally, Bowker provides supply chain services, analytical tools, and bibliographic information on published works to the book publishing industry. Bowker is the publisher of Books in Print and other compilations of information about books and periodical titles. It maintains operational offices in England and Australia, where it is known as Thorpe-Bowker. For more information, refer to http://www.bowker.com/.