Do researchers need to care about PID systems?

A survey across 1400 scientists in the natural sciences and engineering across Germany conducted in 2016 revealed that although more than 70 % of the researchers are using DOIs for journal publications, less than 10% use DOIs for research data. To the question of why they are not using DOIs more than half (56%) answered that they don’t know about the option to use DOIs for other publications (datasets, conference papers etc.) Therefore it is not surprising that the majority (57 %) stated that they had no need for DOI counselling services. 40% of the questioned researchers need more information and almost 30% cannot see a benefit.
Publishers have been using PID systems for articles for years, and the DOI registration and citation are a natural part of the standard publication workflow. With the new digital age, the possibilities to publishing digital research objects beyond articles are bigger than ever – but the respective infrastructure providers are still struggling to provide integrated PID services. Infrastructure providers need to learn from publishers and offer integrated PID services, complementing existing workflows, using researcher’s vocabulary to support usability and promotion. Sell the benefit and enable researchers to focus on what they are best at: Do research (and not worry about the rest)!