ABCD springer.com 10 Steps to Implementing an eBook Collection A Guide for Librarians BEST PRACTICES springer.com 10 Steps to Implementing an eBook Collection 10 Best Practices for Acquiring and Implementing an eBook Collection Acquiring and implementing an eBook collec- departmental tension, and become extremely tion is a major business process upheaval, costly. To avoid these pitfalls and ensure that requiring significant planning and resources. libraries enjoy the smoothest possible transi- Entering into an eBook arrangement without tion to eBooks, Springer has prepared the fully analyzing internal processes, user needs, following list of best practices for implementing and publisher offerings can disrupt existing an eBook strategy. acquisitions and operations, create intra- The 10 Steps 1. Determine Your Collection Development Strategy Libraries typically assemble their eBook collec- frequently searched material in which content tions through one of two strategies – “pick and freshness is critical. Generally, reference choose” or “critical mass.” The pick and choose materials and monographs, particularly in strategy, in which librarians acquire individual the Science, Technology and Medicine (STM) titles, provides institutions with the flexibility to fields, are most amenable to eBook collec- supplement their print catalogs with targeted tions. STM users tend to be more familiar with selections and ease into an eBook strategy very online research than those of other disciplines, slowly. Because pick and choose acquisition and their research styles expose the advan- strategies require less initial investment of time tages of eBooks very quickly. Ms. Jane Miller, and budget, they are often easier for institu- Electronic Information Systems & Services tions to accept. However, over the long term, Librarian of Victoria University, Melbourne greater overall costs and more restrictive Digital echoed this sentiment. “In 5 years print and Rights Management (DRM) policies can make eBooks purchase will be equal and eBooks will pick and choose an unattractive proposition. be universally accepted by users. In 10 years eBooks will be the norm … in science and The critical mass strategy consists of focusing business.” initial acquisitions on building a mass of subject-specific content large enough to After establishing sufficient coverage in a high- encourage intense usage. While critical mass demand area, libraries should seek a group of strategies do not provided the specificity of “early adopters,” willing to experiment with all pick and choose, they are more cost-effec- available research features. tive, tend to have less restrictive DRM policies By interviewing these users about research attached to content, and provide more overall tools and methods, librarians can begin broad- content usage for a given budget. ening their collections with a realistic assess- ment of user needs. When pursuing a critical mass strategy, Librarians should begin with high-demand, 10 Steps to Implementing an eBook Collection springer.com 2. Evaluate Different Business Models Once they have completed their early adopter systems. Without these, electronic collections interviews, librarians should use that data to will remain an island until librarians dedicate evaluate a number of critical vendor policies. resources to the time-consuming, expensive The most critical features to assess are: task of manual catalog integration. 7 Digital Rights Management (DRM) 7 Ownership vs. subscription DRM technologies protect content publishers’ Many eBook publishers have adopted an rights by limiting the end user’s ability to copy, ongoing subscription model popular with forward, or otherwise manipulate content. other digital services. This leaves libraries’ most These protections may inhibit users’ research critical assets vulnerable to contract disputes, methods, countering many of the values of the publisher’s financial well-being, and other electronic documents (such as cut and paste), acts beyond the library’s control. Librarians or the ability to have multiple users access should seek out publishers who provide the content simultaneously. Selecting a vendor same level of content ownership found in the with the smallest possible amount of DRM will printed book world. increase user satisfaction and content usage. 7 Archiving policies 7 Number of concurrent users Libraries should retain day-to-day and long- Some vendors place restrictions on simulta- term access to eBook content, regardless of neous access, limiting each piece of content changes in a publisher’s status. To fulfill these to a small number of users. While any number requirements, publishers should provide of concurrent users greater than one is an perpetual content access to libraries in business improvement over printed material, libraries agreements and participate in an archiving should seek out providers with no user limita- program such as LOCKSS , CLOCKSS or PORTICO tions or very high limits, as many electronic to ensure that content persists. Libraries should titles, will have very high demand spikes. also require that contracts provide access to archived versions of periodicals, ensuring that 7 COUNTER compliance users can perform historical searches in one The Counting Online Usage of Networked location. Electronic Resources (COUNTER) initiative is the de facto standard for usage measurement 7 Flexibility in the reference industry, allowing librarians to Each library is different, and librarians should compare usage statistics between publishers seek out publishers who are willing to provide and institutions. Publishers that do not flexible package arrangements. For example, provider COUNTER-compliant tools will be diffi- content packages based on subject collection cult to benchmark, making cost-justifications or research intensity allow librarians the ability difficult and time-consuming, if not impossible. to supplement their collections cost-effectively by paying for the content they need most. 7 Availability of MARC records Vendors should supply MARC records in an easily-imported format to allow librarians to integrate electronic collections into their OPAC 10 Steps to Implementing an eBook Collection springer.com 3. Gain Internal Support The users must be gradually brought to ment strategies and business models of various accept (eBooks). That was our idea with the publishers. To help internal supporters convince Springer offering, to take a big leap forward their peers, institutions should turn to other with the eBooks and try to make clear to the librarians who have made successful eBook people what possibilities eBooks offer. transitions, inviting them to share their stories. Dr. Peter te Boekhorst, Head of Acquisi- tions, General Library, University of Muenster, Content publishers can provide statistics, Germany librarian referrals, and other helpful resources. For example, Springer has helped 130 Institutions should create widespread under- libraries worldwide libraries implement eBook standing and acceptance of eBooks within their programs, recently fielded and in-depth inter- library community before releasing new initia- national interview and survey of six leading tives to users. They should begin by educating libraries, and can provide a wealth of anecdotal Subject Specialists and Librarian Liaisons on and statistical information to help librarians the benefits of eBooks versus print books and champion eBooks. discussing the different collection develop- 4. Plan Policy Changes with Subject Specialists/ Librarian Liaisons Any eBook introduction will require budgetary tions department. Institutions that encounter and acquisition policy changes, as well as an budgetary conflicts should enlist the help of inventory of user behaviors and needs. Before other librarians who have implemented eBook implementing an eBook strategy, institutions programs. should invite all relevant personnel to discuss what changes need to be made to library At this point, libraries should also estimate procedures and policies for acquiring eBooks usage profiles by type or asset, since these can versus print books. impact vendor choice, licensing agreements, and ultimately, budget constraints. Examples Libraries should first discuss how the acquisi- of factors to consider in this process include, tion of e-books will impact approval plans the estimated umber of concurrent content of titles in print, and what acquisitions and viewers, user search behavior, the number of processing operations will change to accommo- access points (e.g. one library, multiple libraries, date the purchase of e-books. After confirming or Web-connected home PCs), and the neces- procedural changes, they should evaluate sity of printing documents. Librarians should budgetary sources for eBook acquisition. This is also take special note of their early adopter’s often a matter of some contention, as desig- needs. By acquiring appropriate content for nated “book” librarians or individual depart- these users, libraries can build internal success ments may be unwilling to part with portions stories they can use to build support for future of their budgets for a centralized eBook acquisi- acquisitions. 5. Discuss implementation with technical staff After establishing business needs, libraries Libraries choosing to load locally may require should enlist their IT or cataloging depart- additional hardware and software during the ments, or perhaps, their consortia to discuss initial loading phase, with processes, training, requirements