The Current State of eBooks in Academic Libraries: A North American Perspective

Emerging Trends in Digital Publishing and the Digital LibraryNational Taiwan University Library

January 8, 2013

Michael Levine-ClarkAssociate Dean for Scholarly Communication and Collections Services

University of Denvermichael.levine-clark@du.edu

ORHow We’re Getting It Wrong

Consumer eBooks are Easy . . .And Successful

For academic libraries, ebooks have been confusing from the beginning

“All the elements that would make the e-book market viable are not quite in place. The partnerships in the market, development of standards, software and hardware features, and business models are still regularly changing” (2001)

Snowhill, Lucia. 2001. “E-Books and their Future in Academic Libraries: An Overview.” D-Lib Magazine 7 (7/8). doi: 10.1045/july2001-snowhill.

“Several themes consistently appear in the literature on the barriers to the adoption and integration of e-books into library collections, services, and systems. These include the lack of e-book and hardware standards; incompatible rights and operability; unrealistic price, purchase, and access models; and limited discovery and delivery options.” (2007)

Connnaway, Lynn Silipigni and Heather L. Wicht (2007). “What Happened to the E-Book Revolution?: The Gradual Integration of E-Books into Academic Libraries.” The Journal of Electronic Publishing 10 (3). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/3336451.0010.302.

“ideally, the choice to acquire a print or electronic copy of a book should be as simple as a single choice (print, electronic, or both) integrated into the same acquisition systems libraries already use for print books” (2010)

Slater, Robert. 2010. “Why Aren’t E-Books Gaining More Ground in Academic Libraries? E-Book Use and Perceptions: A Review of Published Literature and Research.” Journal of Web Librarianship 4: 238.

Print Books are Easy

• Same book from multiple vendors– One ISBN for hardcover– One ISBN for paperback

• Library can use its preferred vendor• Library can use its established workflow– For ordering– For processing– For cataloging

eBooks are NOT Easy

• Hard to figure out ebooks– may not even come out as an ebook– may be released after print– may be limited to some aggregators– may have different ISBNs

• eBooks require licensing• eBooks may have usage restrictions

E-Books Are Incredibly Confusingi 020 9781118357514 (electronic bk.)i 020 1118357515 (electronic bk.)i 020 9781118358191 (electronic bk.)i 020 1118358198 (electronic bk.)i 020 |z9781118358177i 020 |z1118358171i 020 |z9781118358184i 020 |z111835818Xi 020 |z1118358198i 020 9780470661512 (cloth)i 020 0470661518 (cloth)i 020 |z9780470974322 (hardback)

Predicting eBook Availability is Difficult

• Only 42% of ebooks come out within two months of print equivalent (October 2012)*

• Books with potential for course adoption may never come out as ebooks

• Publishers sometimes make decisions about aggregators and pricing models on a case-by-case basis

*Matt Nauman, Academic Digital Content Manager, YBP Library Services, e-mail message, October 31, 2012

Digital Rights Management (DRM)• A concern for libraries• Often stricter with

aggregator than publisher

• Another necessary consideration when ordering ebooks

• But, should either libraries or publishers be concerned?

How Do We Acquire eBooks?

Selection Models: Title-by-Title

• Greater flexibility to match collecting needs – only buy what you need

• More expensive per title (full price)• Potentially cheaper overall• Time consuming

Selection Models: Packages

• May end up with material that isn’t relevant to local needs

• Can be cheaper overall than buying title-by-title

• Frees up selector time• Can be a good solution for particular subjects,

types of materials

Access Models: Subscription• Possible to get a large collection at a relatively low annual

cost– Cheaper per title– ebrary Academic Complete

• Often a mix of backlist and frontlist content• No guarantees of long-term availability• Useful for material that may become obsolete quickly

– Technology– Medicine– Business

• Useful to introduce critical mass

Access Models: Perpetual Access

• Higher cost than subscription• Content added permanently to the collection– Guaranteed availability

• Can behave like a subscription in terms of budget commitment

Usage Models

• Single user– Often cheapest– Ideal for most books, in most libraries

• Multiple users– Defined number– Unlimited– Often more expensive– Often unnecessary– Useful for heavily used material

• Course Reserves

Usage Models: Examples

• ebrary– Single User Purchase Option (SUPO)– Multiple User Purchase Option (MUPO)– Numerous Single User Purchase Option (NUPO)• Many copies of a SUPO title

– Extended Access• Automatic upgrade from SUPO to MUPO triggered by

use

Usage Models: Examples

• Ebook Library (EBL)– Non-Linear Lending Model• Unlimited concurrent users• 325 “uses” a year

– (lower for some titles)– Doesn’t include uses under ten minutes

– Unlimited Access Model• Why?

Demand-Driven Acquisition

• User-driven access• Allows libraries to offer more ebooks• Allows libraries to acquire only what they

need• Allows libraries to offer bigger collections

Demand-Driven Acquisition

• The EBL model– Has been adopted by other vendors– Free browse (five minutes or less)– Short-term loan (STL)• Customizable

– Autopurchase

Demand-Driven Acquisition: Key Components

• Free discovery– Brief time in the book– Free access to front/back matter– Allows payment only for intentional use

• Short term loan– Allows payment for amount of use

• Purchase– For titles with significant use

Demand-Driven Acquisition: Another Model

• netLibrary (1999)– First use free– Purchase on second use– Bananas!

• MyiLibrary– Same model but access to table of contents is free

Evidence-Based Selection

• Elsevier (and others)• Commit agreed-upon sum of money up front• Access to all titles• Purchase titles based on usage

• Risk: Not enough usage = spending money on unused titles

The Providers: Major Aggregators• Broad coverage of

content– Many publishers– All subjects– Front and backlist

• Multiple models– Subscription – Perpetual access– Title-by-title– Package– DDA

• Easy workflow• Key players– Ebook Library (EBL)– Ebrary– EBSCO– MyiLibrary

University Press/Not-for-Profit Aggregators

• Broad coverage– University Presses– Societies– All subjects– Front and backlist

• Multiple models– Subscription – Perpetual access– Title-by-title– Package– DDA

• Easy workflow• Potentially better DRM• Key players

– Books at JSTOR– University Press Content

Consortium (UPCC), Project Muse

– University Press Scholarship Online (UPSO), OUP

– University Publishing Online, CUP

Specialized Aggregators

• Useful for particular subjects– Computer manuals– Technical manuals– Engineering– Medicine– Business

• Subscription– Only current content

matters

• Key Players– Books 24x7– Knovel– Safari

Publisher Platforms

• Limited to that publisher• Integrates with journal platform• Better DRM (generally)• Less streamlined with other monographic

acquisition workflow• No DDA• Only makes sense for particularly large

publishers

Bringing It All Together: Approval Vendors

• Too many sources for ebooks• Still need to collect print• Libraries need simple workflow for– Ordering– Managing duplication– Providing discovery records

Choosing eBook Vendors

• Which ones work with your approval vendor?• Which ones have the content you need?• Which ones have better DRM?• Which ones have the purchase models you

want?

eBook Acquisition Still Difficult

• Inconsistency by publishers– Which aggregator(s)?– Publisher platform?– Available as an ebook?• Before or after the print book?

– Which purchase models?

Two Current eBook Options – Neither Is Ideal

• Work with a subset of vendors (either through approval vendor or not)– Easier workflow– Some titles will be missed

• Work with as many vendors as possible– Inefficient workflow– More titles will be available

“ideally, the choice to acquire a print or electronic copy of a book should be as simple as a single choice (print, electronic, or both) integrated into the same acquisition systems libraries already use for print books” (2010)

Slater, Robert. 2010. “Why Aren’t E-Books Gaining More Ground in Academic Libraries? E-Book Use and Perceptions: A Review of Published Literature and Research.” Journal of Web Librarianship 4: 238.

Thank You

Michael Levine-ClarkAssociate Dean for Scholarly Communication

and Collections ServicesUniversity of Denver

michael.levine-clark@du.edu