GTIN

(Global Trade Item Number) – An identifier for trade items developed by an international standards group (GS1). GTIN identifiers are used to look up product information in a database (often by inputting the number through a bar code scanner pointed at an actual product) which may belong to a retailer, manufacturer or other entity. The uniqueness and universality of the GTIN’s are useful in establishing which product in one database corresponds to which product in another database, especially across organizational boundaries. GTINs may be 8, 12, 13 or 14 digits long, and each of these 4 numbering structures are constructed in a similar fashion, combining Company Prefix, Item Reference and a calculated Check Digit.