Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief description of the digital preservation programme at the National Library of New Zealand. Design/methodology/approach: Following a description of the legislative and strategic context for digital preservation in New Zealand, details are provided of the system for the National Digital Heritage Archive (NDHA), developed with help from Ex Libris, and marketed as Rosetta. A small survey of staff attitudes to the NDHA was also carried out. Findings: Key factors to be considered by others developing a digital preservation programme include: definition of strategic drivers; choice of a suitable business model; defining the exact purpose of the digital preservation programme; deployment and implementation; staffing aspects; and how to get started. Originality/value: The National Library of New Zealand has been a leading organisation in digital preservation and its experiences will be of relevance to many other libraries throughout the world. (Contains 1 figure and 1 table.)