FEATURE
E-books Valerie Ryder, director of information strategy, Wolper Information Services R
esearch libraries in academic institutions were early adopters of e-books. Most US academic libraries offered e-books to students and faculty since at least 2007 and the number of e-books offered to their user populations continues to increase significantly, according to the ‘2012 Survey of Ebook Usage in U.S. Academic Libraries’ conducted by Library Journal. Academic library spending on e-books has increased as a percentage of their acquisitions budget, but still remains less than 10 per cent.
E-books also play a significant role in corporate and government libraries, although it is difficult to find published, statistical studies about their collections, due to the proprietary nature of their institutions. E-books in corporate and government libraries are diversified in nature, format and functionality so that they address the needs of the institution they serve. The number-one challenge for academic libraries is the cost of e-books, combined with dissatisfaction over the relatively low discounts offered by e-book vendors. Ease of use
is a primary criterion in selecting an e-book vendor by academic librarians. Timely receipt of MARC (cataloging) records for the library’s online catalogue to aid users in discovering and accessing e-books is
also important. For the user, multiple device options available for accessing and downloading e-books for offline reading via a mobile device are critical.
‘Lack of availability of desired titles in e-book format for preferred devices remains a strong deterrent’
An overall challenge faced by libraries is the licensing of e-books for use by the library’s user population. Although electronic resource and acquisitions librarians have been dealing with licensing versus ownership issues for two decades, some requirements are unique to
e-books. Two especially challenging issues are the number of times that an e-book is used, as well as lending of an e-book by one library to another library. The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) has been addressing these questions to reach a common ground by modifying its ‘Shared E-Resource Understanding (SERU) Recommended Practice’ to incorporate e-books into a best practice originally developed for e-journals. One continuing barrier to e-book access in academic libraries is user lack of awareness of e-book availability, although that factor has been declining. A limited number of titles and difficulty reading e-books on-screen remain strong as negative factors. Complex downloading processes have dramatically risen as a barrier given by academic users. Digital rights management issues have declined in importance but are still significant. Lack of availability of desired titles in e-book format for preferred devices remains a strong deterrent.
Oh! We do like to be beside the seaside... STAND 46 & 47
Join SAGE at the UKSG Conference this April to test your observation and research skills!
From online search and discovery tools to the latest primary source collections, explore what’s new at SAGE for your chance to win*
NEW!
SAGE Navigator – New to SAGE Knowledge: the essential social sciences literature review tool
Mass Observation Online: a “treasure trove” for the study of British Social History in the modern era
*For a chance to win an Amazon gift card, visit the SAGE stand and ask for ‘BINGO’
http://sagepub.co.uk/librarians
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36