Pricing and Acquisitions Policies for Electronic Resources: Is the Market Stable Enough to Establish Local Standards?
SUMMARY Librarians establish pricing policies for traditional acquisitions to systematize what can be an unpredictable process. This article discusses whether the electronic resource market is currently stable enough for librarians to apply similar policies to their electronic acquisitions. It also examines the history and current state of electronic resource pricing, and relates electronic resource pricing policy preferences as articulated by professionals who work closely with electronic resource acquisitions.
Pricing strategies and models for the provision of digitized texts in higher education
The paper describes research into charging mechanisms for the delivery of digitized texts to students in the higher education sector. A satisfactory pricing model in this domain is urgently required. The history and background of the use and pricing of digitized texts for students in the higher education sector is examined. Issues of economics in the electronic era are described. The issues involved are outlined in relation to the stakeholders involved, namely academics, authors, the CLA (Copyright Licensing Agency), HERON (Higher Education Resources On-demand) libraries in the HE sector, publishers and students. Past projects and research conducted to date are considered and the results discussed. Particular reference is made to the HERON project, a service provided for the UK higher education community that delivers copyright clearance, digitization and delivery of the text to UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). HERON is also building up a national database and resource bank of the texts. Other electronic resource models are considered, in particular library initiatives. International projects are covered in relation to how pricing issues are addressed throughout the world, particularly in the USA. The case is proposed of the benefits to all stakeholders of establishing a mutually acceptable pricing model for the distribution of digitized texts to the HE/FE community. The PELICAN project had the ultimate aim of developing pricing models for the delivery of digitized text to the UK HE community, satisfying all stakeholders as far as possible. The project’s initial research findings are described, including a table of the possible pricing mechanisms and initial conclusions drawn.
Organizational Influences on the University Electronic Library
Abstract This paper reviews the literature on full-text electronic library (and digital library) research and development, to discuss the organizational factors which can impact on electronic library development. Such factors, it is argued, affect not only the overall success of an electronic library project within a higher education institution, but also and more specifically the usability of the final system for its staff and student end-users. Usability is taken to involve more than merely the surface user interface of a system. Relevant statements and findings in the literature are set within the context of an organizational framework, which emphasizes the influences of each stakeholder group on the end-users' experience of the system. It is concluded that system design may be improved by further research into the real behaviour of students and academics, coupled with a broader view of the organizational context in which development takes place.