31 July 2020
Identity and access management specialist OpenAthens is celebrating its 25th anniversary. The Bristol-based organisation will mark the milestone with a range of celebratory activities over the next few months which will include recognition of staff, customers and partners.
Activities will be organised in recognition of the key values of OpenAthens. Specifically, showcasing how the organisation has helped people achieve great things over its quarter century history. It will also continue its ongoing commitment to providing excellent customer service and support. Finally, celebrations will focus on OpenAthens’ commitment to future innovation.
Formed in 1995 to provide access to the National Information Services and Systems (NISS) and Bath Information and Data Service (BIDS), the single sign-on software was originally developed by the IT department of the University of Bath.
In its early years, OpenAthens was one of the first organisations to provide electronic access to library databases. The team working on the project spotted its potential for use by other educational institutions. Within a couple of years, it had been adopted by universities across the UK.
OpenAthens is now a market leading global access management organisation. Its technology is used by more than 2,600 organisations across multiple sectors, in over 50 countries.
OpenAthens is a not for profit organisation and is now a Jisc enterprise, following the merger in 2019 with its parent company Eduserv.