About ISSN Barcodes
The ISSN barcode (International Standard Serial Number) is the global identifier for periodic publications, including magazines, journals, newspapers, annual directories, and academic serials. While books use the ISBN, magazines and periodicals use the 8-digit ISSN number, which is converted into a 13-digit EAN-13 barcode structure for retail scanning.
How ISSN Encoding Works
To represent an 8-digit ISSN as a retail barcode, it is wrapped in an EAN-13 structure. It begins with the prefix "977", followed by the first 7 digits of the ISSN number. Next is a 2-digit sequence code (usually "00") used to denote price changes or special versions. The barcode ends with a modulo-10 check digit. It is frequently printed with an EAN-2 add-on barcode to track issue numbers.
Common Applications and Industries
ISSN barcodes are printed on the covers of magazines, newspapers, scientific journals, and comic books. Retailers scan the barcode at checkout to track inventory and ring up the correct price. Distributors scan the combined ISSN and EAN-2 codes to verify the current issue number and process returns of expired magazines.
Advantages & Limitations
ISSN barcodes enable magazines and periodicals to be scanned at standard retail checkouts alongside regular grocery items. The addition of EAN-2 allows easy issue-level tracking. The main limitation is that it only identifies the publication title series, not the specific issue contents, requiring the EAN-2 add-on for serial distinction.