This study looks at how academic libraries, especially research oriented institutions, develop and use cost per download data in collection decision-making. The study is based on data from 52 institutions, predominantly from the USA but also from Canada, the UK , continental Europe and elsewhere.
Data in the report is broken out by type of institution (i.e. research university, doctoral-level, etc.) and by overall student enrollment, tuition, for public and private institutions and for those located in the USA and all other countries. Data is also presented separately for collections oriented towards healthcare and medicine, and for multidisciplinary collections.
The 54-page study helps its readers to answer questions such as: How precise an idea do libraries have about the cost per download of their subscribed journals? How many libraries feel that they measure this cost well? What tools, applications or programs do they use to obtain or develop this data? What makes it easier or harder to obtain such data? How much confidence do they have in the accuracy of the data often made available by journals publishers? Do some of these publishers produce more reliable data than others? If so , which ones? Does the library use benchmarking data from other libraries or consortia when developing or using their in-hour cost per download data? Exactly what is the cost per download for the library’s most and least expensive journals subscription packages? Is the library making any special efforts to obtain or obtain better cost per download data as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing pressure on library budgets?
Just a few of the study’s many findings are that:
- Approximately half of the institutions surveyed said that they had a very or extremely precise idea of the cost per download of journal articles from their university collections.
- Public college libraries were much more likely than private college libraries to use benchmarking data from other institutions.
- Cost per download was generally higher in the USA than abroad and private colleges and universities tended to pay considerably higher costs per download than their public sector counterparts.
- The median cost per download for the highest cost “Big Deal” from the libraries sampled was $15.00.
Table of Contents
THE QUESTIONNAIRE
PARTICIPANTS LIST
Characteristics of the Sample
Summary of Main Findings
Quality of Data About Cost Per Download
Factors that Foster or Impede Library Understanding of Cost Per Download
Use of Benchmarking Data from Other Libraries or Consortia
Library Tools or Application for Assisting in Cost Per Download Determination
Using Bibliometric Data in Conjunction with Cost per Download
Publishers Believed to Provide Particularly Accurate Download Data
Publishers Believed to Provide Less Accurate Data
Level of Satisfaction with Quality of Download Data from Publishers
Lowest Average Cost per Download on Lowest Cost “Big Deal”
Highest Average Cost per Download on Lowest Cost “Big Deal”
Special Efforts to Obtain Cost per Download Data in Light of COVID Pandemic
Table 1.1 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons?
Table 1.2 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out by country
Table 1.3 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out by enrollment
Table 1.4 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 1.5 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 1.6 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 1.7 About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons? Broken out for public and private colleges
What factors have interfered with or assisted your library in getting a precise idea of cost per download? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 2.1 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area?
Table 2.2 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out by country
Table 2.3 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out by enrollment
Table 2.4 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 2.5 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 2.6 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 2.7 Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area? Broken out for public and private colleges
Table 3.1 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria?
Table 3.2 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out by country
Table 3.3 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out by enrollment
Table 3.4 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 3.5 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 3.6 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 3.7 Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria? Broken out for public and private colleges
If so, please describe the tool or approach that you use to calculate, circulate and use such data in decision-making.
Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
In using cost per download data how does the library employ journal impact factor or other bibliometric or almetric measures to weigh or adjust cost per download data? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Which journal publishers do you feel provide particularly accurate download data? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Which journal publishers do you feel provide particularly inflated or otherwise suspect download data? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 4.1 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers?
Table 4.2 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out by country
Table 4.3 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out by enrollment
Table 4.4 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 4.5 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 4.6 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 4.7 Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers? Broken out for public and private colleges
For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 5.1 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download?
Table 5.2 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by country
Table 5.3 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by enrollment
Table 5.4 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 5.5 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 5.6 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 5.7 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost (in US $) per download? Broken out for public and private colleges
For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 6.1 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download?
Table 6.2 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by country Table 6.3 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by enrollment
Table 6.4 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by what area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
Table 6.5 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution
Table 6.6 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out by tuition, $
Table 6.7 For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost (in US $) per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download? Broken out for public and private colleges
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic has your library made greater efforts to obtain and use cost per download data and if so, how? Broken out by Carnegie class or type of institution THE QUESTIONNAIRE
1. Please enter your contact information
A. Name
B. Organization
C. Work Title
D. Country
E. Email Address
F. Phone Number
2. The full time equivalent enrollment of the university served by your office is:
If you serve only the medical school then put in medical school enrollment but if you serve an entire college put in all enrollment including undergraduate.
3. What area of technology accounts for the highest percentage of your institutional journals budget?
A. Energy
B. Biology & Healthcare
C. Engineering
D. Software/Information
E. Materials/Mining/Agriculture
F. Other (please specify)
4. Carnegie class or type of institution
A. A specialized unit or college such as a medical school or engineering college
B. A major research university
C. A doctoral or MA level college or university
D. Other (please specify)
5. What is average annual tuition not including deductions or financial aid at your institution?
6. Is your college or university public or private?
A. Public
B. Private
7. About how precise an idea does your library have of the cost per download of journal articles that you provide to library patrons?
A. Extremely precisely
B. Very precisely
C. Somewhat precisely
D. Not so precisely
E. Not at all precisely
8. What factors have interfered with or assisted your library in getting a precise idea of cost per download?
9. Does the library use data from other libraries or consortia about cost per download as a benchmarking tool for its own efforts in this area?
A. Yes
B. No
10. Does the library a have tool or application that helps it to calculate cost per download for particular journals, publishers, subject areas or other criteria?
A. Yes
B. No
11. If so, please describe the tool or approach that you use to calculate, circulate and use such data in decision-making.
12. In using cost per download data how does the library employ journal impact factor or other bibliometric or almetric measures to weigh or adjust cost per download data?
13. Which journal publishers do you feel provide particularly accurate download data?
14. Which journal publishers do you feel provide particularly inflated or otherwise suspect download data?
15. Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of the download data that you receive from journal publishers?
A. Very satisfied
B. Satisfied
C. Somewhat satisfied
D. Somewhat dissatisfied
E. Dissatisfied
F. Very dissatisfied
16. For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your lowest average cost per download?
17. For your STEM "Big Deal" journals subscriptions, what is your highest average cost per download. What is the publisher and the cost per download?
18. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic has your library made greater efforts to obtain and use cost per download data and if so, how?
PARTICIPANTS LIST
- Albany State University
- Andrews University
- Bibliothèque Cantonale et Universitaire Fribourg
- Boxford University Library
- Bryan College
- CCHS Medical libraries
- Council of Scientific & Industrial Research
- CSMC Cedars Sinai Medical Center
- Eastern Nazarene College
- Eastern Oregon University
- Elizabeth City State University
- German National Library of Science and Technology
- Harding University/Brackett Library
- Harper Adams University
- Illinois State University
- Lawrence Technological University
- Macquarie University
- MAL
- MBLWHOI Library
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
- Montana State University Library
- NACE International
- New Mexico State University - Library
- Purdue University Libraries
- Saint Joseph Seminary College Rouquette Library
- Saint Louis University
- Southern Utah University
- St. Francis Hospital
- SUNY Broome
- Texas A&M University-San Antonio
- The College of New Jersey
- TOBB ETU
- TUBITAK ULAKBIM
- UNC Greensboro
- Univ of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
- Universidad Pública de Navarra
- Universitaire Fribourg Bibliothèque Cantonale
- Universitat Pompeu Fabra
- University of Bedfordshire
- University of Iowa
- University of Missouri Kansas City
- University of Otago
- University of Prince Edward Island
- University of South Carolina Upstate
- University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
- UNT Health Science Center
- UOPX
- Virginia Military Institute
- Washington State University
- Worcester State University
- Yeshiva University
Methodology
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