AMSTERDAM, May 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Elsevier, a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, today announced the launch of the SciVerse Applications Apps for Library Idea Challenge (http://www.appsforlibrary.com/ ). The international competition encourages librarians and information professionals to conceptualize solutions to the challenges that they and their constituents face in addressing the search and discovery of information.

Entrants are invited to submit specific ideas for applications for the SciVerse suite that solve problems affecting the search and discovery of information within librarian and researcher workflows alike. Selected app concepts will be posted on the challenge website and open to commentary from peers and the public, enabling a dialogue within the librarian community to identify problems and discuss potential solutions. Two grand-prize winners will be selected - one by a panel of judges and one by community vote.

The winners will each receive a cash prize of EUR 750 (approximately $1,000 USD). The winners' names and concepts will also be featured in the relevant Elsevier library and information science journals. Other prizes will be available to eligible idea entrants and commenters.

The call for entries opened May 13th and the deadline for submissions is September 2nd, 2011. An international panel of judges will select up to 10 finalist app idea entries. The community will then be invited to comment on the finalist ideas with suggestions to improve them and vote for app ideas they believe will deliver the most value to researchers. The winners will be announced in November 2011. Elsevier will explore development of the two winning app concepts for inclusion in SciVerse Applications.

"Librarians have a good understanding and knowledge of which tools are most needed to manage information and improve the research workflow," explained Rafael Sidi, Vice President, Application Marketplace and Developer Network at Elsevier. "We view this challenge as an opportunity for the library communities to share their ideas around the unmet workflow needs of researchers and propose innovative, customized solutions. We look forward to bringing these concepts to life through the vibrant developer communities that exist within universities we serve."

The Apps for Library Idea Challenge is part of a series of community competitions launched by Elsevier that engage the scientific research communities, librarians and application developers in the creation and conceptualization of search and discovery applications. Most recently, the Developer Network at Elsevier introduced the "Apps for Science Challenge," (http://appsforscience.com/) an international competition calling specifically upon developers to build applications within this vein. Through SciVerse Applications (http://www.applications.sciverse.com/), researchers and librarians can collaborate with developers to create new applications and customize their SciVerse search and discovery workflow. The Developer Network (http://developers.sciverse.com/) features a community for developers and opens up opportunities for developers to gain recognition, prestige and revenue through the contribution of new applications to SciVerse.

To enter the Apps for Library Idea Challenge, and for complete official rules and additional information, please visit http://www.appsforlibrary.com.