OpenURL is a standardized format for encoding a description of a resource within a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), intended to help Internet users to find a copy of the resource that they are allowed to access. Although OpenURL could be used with any kind of resource on the Internet, it is usually used by libraries to help connect patrons with such content as articles, books, or patents held in their collections or available by subscription. The National Information Standards Organization has developed standards for OpenURL and its data container (the ContextObject) as American National Standards Institute standard ANSI/NISO Z39.88-2004.

OpenURL is a standardized format for encoding a description of a resource within a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), intended to help Internet users to find a copy of the resource that they are allowed to access. Although OpenURL could be used with any kind of resource on the Internet, it is usually used by libraries to help connect patrons with such content as articles, books, or patents held in their collections or available by subscription. The National Information Standards Organization has developed standards for OpenURL and its data container (the ContextObject) as American National Standards Institute standard ANSI/NISO Z39.88-2004.