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Policy On Collecting Only Electronic Versions Of Journals
Introduction
This policy is intended to indicate when it is appropriate to collect only the electronic version of a journal or periodical. Collection of the e-version only could be considered for new subscriptions or as a conversion or cancellation of a print subscription. This policy focuses on evaluating the adequacy of collecting only the electronic format. It does not define the necessity of collecting the electronic format either alone or in combination with the print version.
Print versions of journals have traditionally been the only version available to libraries. The durability and utility of print has justified the substantial investments made by the University Libraries in acquiring and preserving journal titles. Increasingly, electronic versions of journals have become available either as alternatives to print or as enhanced forms of titles simultaneously offered in print form. Some journals are now only available in electronic form. As electronic formats increasingly become acceptable or even attractive alternatives to print formats, it is important for the Libraries to clarify the circumstances in which subscription only to an electronic form of a journal is acceptable.
Recent user surveys have suggested that the Libraries' users support decisions to carry only electronic formats for many titles, especially titles that are not core for any campus research or teaching programs. Some publishers are explicitly offering incentives to libraries to collect exclusively the electronic format in an effort to free themselves of the costs of publishing in multiple formats. Most importantly, the desire to offer the greatest service possible with limited collections resources forces collection managers to consider carefully when the costs of acquiring print journals, either in preference to electronic access or in addition to electronic access are justified.
With the possibility of advantages resulting from relying on only electronic access to journals there may also be drawbacks. This policy attempts to lay out not just the concerns but also the circumstances where those concerns may be adequately addressed by the design of the e-journal.
The Libraries work closely with faculty in managing journal collections. Faculty advise regularly on needed purchases and are consulted when a subscription is considered for cancellation. Conversion of a subscription from print to electronic format, while a serious decision, is not a cancellation decision. Selectors will work closely with faculty in discussing the appropriateness of conversion for various titles. Conversion or subscription to electronic formats will prove at least occasionally to be an effective way to stretch the journal budgets to provide as much content as possible. Ultimately, as the manager of the journal funds, the selector will need to make final decisions on the acceptability of providing only electronic access to a journal title.
This policy spells out current issues in content and access, archiving, pricing, and licensing and offers explicit criteria for determining when subscription to only the electronic format of a journal with a print counterpart is appropriate. The criteria present guidance but will rarely provide an unambiguous directive for any particular decision. The judgement of selectors will ultimately drive these collection decisions. An additional resource exists in the form of the Libraries'Guidelines for Selection of Electronic Publications. These guidelines outline issues relevant to the selection of any electronic publication although they offer no particular guidance on when the electronic format of a journal is an adequate substitute for print. Together the two documents are intended to support selectors and faculty in considering the issues relevant to relying on electronic formats of journals in collection management.
Content and access concerns
The electronic version of a journal should be equivalent to the print version for core journal titles subscriptions. In other words, the complete scholarly content of the print version should also be available in the electronic version. The electronic version should be at least as current as the print version though in many cases it is often published sooner than the print version. Another consideration is the quality of images and other graphics especially those in color. Selectors may want to work with users to determine what is the standard needed for image quality. See also the archiving section of the policy for guidance on the availability of back issues in electronic format.
The UM Libraries will only consider agreements that offer campus-wide access via IP address. It is also important to know if the access to the electronic version is stable and reliable. A reasonable effort should be made by the publisher and/or distributor to ensure that the journal is available 100% of the time. Vendors should use reliable mirrored servers for both content and subscriber lists. We should expect to be notified in advance of changes and anticipated downtime.
Reviewing the license to determine content and access
A selector should review the license for a journal as part of the decision to select an electronic-only subscription. To examine a license effectively, a selector should think about who will use the publication and how they will use it, and make sure the license conforms to those expectations.
The selector should focus on two pieces of information.
- Does the license adequately describe content (e.g. the publication or bundle of publications) the selector expects to receive?
- What does the license say about who may access the publications and how the publication(s) may be accessed?
The license, not the publisher's website or catalog, describes the content to which we are subscribing. Selectors may find that the license requires the purchase of titles in addition to the desired title or that there is a non-cancellation clause. Licenses may also provide for the omission of certain content from a publication or provide for a delay in the online publication of particular types of articles.
Publishers may restrict use of their publications. Selectors should be aware that the most common restrictions are on interlibrary loan, electronic reserves, and course packs. Licenses may also contain restrictions on downloading, printing, and viewing the articles.
Publishers often provide a copy of their standard license on the website of the publication. Selectors may also request a copy from the publisher or other vendor.
To summarize, the minimum criteria for evaluating content and access are:
- Electronic version is the equivalent of the print version
- Electronic version is at least as current as the print version
- Quality of images and graphics, especially color, are sufficient for intended use
- Access to the electronic version is provided via campus-wide IP address
- Vendor can answer questions regarding the reliability and stability of access to the electronic version
- Vendor can provide a license for the selector to review
Archiving concerns
One criterion in determining the adequacy of an electronic version of a journal is the need to maintain archival access. Not all print items acquired by the Libraries are maintained for long term access in their original format. Some publications are converted to a different format or are kept by the Libraries for a predetermined period. Publications that are heavily used and essential to the University's research and instructional programs should be held to higher standards of archival commitment than peripheral publications.
Currently archiving of electronic journals is in its infancy. However, the commitment both stated and enacted by publishers or other groups varies widely. At present there are three main levels of archival commitment.
- No commitment: Many publishers offer no commitment to preserve or maintain long term availability. This should be of grave concern in the case of heavily used, core titles. However, for peripheral titles, the selector may determine that archival commitments are not required to justify current acquisition of access to the content.
- Expressed commitment, no specific planning: Some publishers have expressed a commitment to creating archival structures but as yet have no archival program in place. An expressed commitment is a public commitment made by the organization. Casual assurances offered verbally by a busy sales representative might not be reliable. An expressed commitment may be acceptable for some core titles if the collection manager believes the commitment is credible. However, the selector should carefully weigh the publisher's mission and commitment to the scholarly marketplace and the publisher's general reputation for following through on publishing commitments. For many peripheral titles an expressed commitment may be adequate given the current conditions of archival evolution.
- Current planning: A much smaller number of publishers are in the process of building archival systems. The library community has yet to reach definitive standards for acceptable archiving systems for electronic journals. However, the engagement in active experimentation or partnerships with trusted third parties such as OCLC or the Library of Congress suggest a reasonable likelihood that the content in question will be preserved. For the handful of publishers who can point to a working archival system in place, the move to electronic access only can be justified even for core content.
Some publishers offer an opportunity for the subscribing institution to obtain copies of the electronic content under varying circumstances, for instance as an annual cumulation or as a data file if the subscription is cancelled or if the publisher decides to cease publication. Strictly speaking this is not archiving and the provision of electronic content in either specified or unspecified data formats may be of dubious value for archival or even shorter term access purposes.
It is worth noting that archival systems typically focus on preservation of content but vary widely in the commitment to long term access. A handful of systems ensure ongoing archival access after subscription has ceased. More commonly, archive access persists only as long as payment is maintained. The existence of an archival system does not necessarily ensure ongoing access to archived content after subscription has ceased. In planning for future access to electronic journals it is wisest to anticipate that access will continue only as long as a subscription is maintained.
Pricing Concerns
A selector should weigh pricing considerations when deciding to subscribe to a new journal, or when renewing a current journal subscription. If it becomes clear that there is a significant financial advantage to subscribing to the electronic-only version of a journal, such a price differential could be sufficient cause to subscribe to only the electronic version of a journal, provided that other conditions outlined in this electronic journal policy document are fulfilled. If CMT becomes aware of such a price differential, selectors may be asked to review affected titles.
When considering a new journal subscription, selectors should investigate the details of the potential options and pricing implications involved in ordering the journal in print, print with electronic access, or solely in electronic format.
If an e-journal is part of a bundle, it must be determined if it is possible to realize savings by subscribing to the package as a whole, or if individual titles may be selected for subscription in an electronic-only version. Some publishers will only accept subscriptions to a journal package and not to individual journal titles. In certain cases, it may be necessary to cancel print equivalents of journals in order to finance a subscription to an e-journal package.
Licensing Concerns
Electronic journals are typically licensed rather than purchased outright, as are print subscriptions. It is important for selectors to review license terms; particularly those defining content and access to the e-journal. Acquisitions does not review the license for content or access restrictions. Licenses are monitored during the order process for other factors such as applicable law, indemnification, and various other terms required by the State of Maryland. License negotiations are usually successful, however it is possible that a publisher will choose not to accept terms the University considers essential. In that case, the resource cannot be added to the collection.
The University Libraries currently have licenses in effect with many publishers. In cases where titles are added to an existing license renegotiation does not typically occur. Selectors can review existing licenses by contacting Acquisitions and requesting a copy. Typically a publisher can invalidate an existing license at will. Occasionally publishers require new license terms at renewal or even mid-contract.
The "Guidelines for Selection of Electronic Publications" lay out a number of licensing considerations that apply to any selection of electronic journals.
Finally there needs to be some consideration of how savings from print subscriptions should be reallocated. It is important to bear in mind that electronic and print subscriptions are sometimes funded from the same source and sometimes funded from separate sources. Many, but not all electronic versions of journals are funded at selectors' discretion from their own funds. Publisher packages of e-journal titles in particular have often been funded by special funds. In some cases the substantial investments required by such purchases might justify a broad review of equivalent print subscriptions. Where there is such significant multi-disciplinary interest and the electronic journal or journal package is funded through general or "big ticket" resources, the savings incurred from review may be returned to the general fund. In cases where an individual selector works with faculty in a particular department to cancel subject-specific journals in print and replace those journals with less expensive electronic journal subscriptions funded by the selectors' fund line, those savings will go back into that serial fund.
Conclusion
A variety of issues will inform effective evaluation of electronic subscriptions to journals. The criteria above may not prove to be the only relevant criteria for decision-making. The electronic journal as a format is very much in an evolutionary state. While this policy provides guidance it will rarely provide an unambiguous directive. As a balance mechanism, concerned parties should remember that all subscription and cancellation decisions will continue to require final signature by the Director for Collection Management and Special Collections.
A few final issues bear mention. In developing this policy it has become clear that the Libraries need to create programs to obtain usage data for the print journal collections to help selectors make informed decisions about the ability of an electronic subscription alone to support the user community. While there are many indicators of use, a program to measure use directly would greatly enhance the confidence with which selectors could approach the conversion of print subscriptions.
It is also important for the Libraries to continue to work closely with faculty in identifying publications that carry the core scholarly production of a research area. Faculty have indicated to the Libraries that they believe there is some core set of publications that merit special consideration in issues of archival preservation and budgetary support for multiple formats. It is not currently clear how best to identify these materials.
