HE sector unites for urgent eBook affordability call
LIBRARY bodies and campaigners across the higher education sector have united in a call for “immediate action” to “introduce more sustain- able and affordable pricing models for ebooks and etextbooks”. The joint statement from SCONUL,
CILIP, the #ebooksSOS campaign, Jisc, the National Acquisitions Group (NAG), Research Libraries UK (RLUK) and the UK purchasing consortia APUC and SUPC marks a new level of unity in the sector. The statement said: “Economic and technological changes in the current pub- lishing market have led to libraries being increasingly excluded from, or priced out of, providing eBooks and eTextbooks for students and library users. Many of the models and fees charged by publishers have either become prohibitively expen- sive, or libraries are no longer permitted to purchase these titles at all, creating an unsustainable situation.”
The immediate calls to action are aimed
at “publishers and aggregators wishing to lead by example and secure the reputa- tional, societal and market share benefits of introducing more sustainable and affordable pricing models.” They include:
l Libraries must be permitted to purchase all titles in electronic format from a publisher’s catalogue that are otherwise available for individuals to purchase – exceptions must be evidence-based and transparent.
l titles must be available on an individual title basis and not solely as part of a bundle;
l eBooks must not be subject to inflated pricing or restrictive licensing after pur- chase because of potential for increased sales;
l new licensing options for titles where one copy per student (“one to one”) e-text- book provision is not appropriate or finan- cially viable;
l existing library pricing must not be subject to unilateral withdrawal by the publisher without justification or enough notice for the library to seek alternatives.
The statement highlighted the value UK
HE libraries deliver to students saying there “is an expectation from the sector that essential learning and teaching titles are made available for students and library users to borrow without them having to purchase their own copies,” adding: “The potential for the latter to perpetuate a two-tier system of education cannot be overlooked.”
The statement also highlighted the value of libraries to their institutions saying they acted as “a central hub for purchasing, discovery, and student and academic liaison” and were “ideally placed to coordinate and purchase eBooks and eTextbooks, for the benefit of students across all types of institutions.” Read the full statement at
https://bit.ly/2YSAfKw.
October-November 2021
INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 11
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