The role of unique identifiers in bibliographic information systems

To date, there is no unique accepted and standardized method for identifying journal articles, authors, and other elements of bibliographic metadata, although in recent years a considerable number of identifiers have been developed. The problem of identification becomes particularly urgent when the same information is used in different scientometric and bibliographic databases, when it is necessary to carry out complex data processing with their further integration. The need for unique identifiers outside of a system is a universal requirement. Initiatives to construct identifiers and systems appear regularly in the scientific press; however, they have not achieved the necessary degree of interoperability. This paper presents the general problems that are associated with metadata identifiers of scientific publications, analyzes a number of the existing systems and technologies, and indicates the current initiatives to remove the gap in the area of identification.