---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 09:46:04 -0500
From: "Simoneaux, Julie" <jsimoneaux@ECRI.ORG>
Subject: Online access with print institutional subscriptions

Hello friends,

I know this has been discussed before but I'm frustrated and want to bring
it up again.

I am currently going through the 1100 journals that we receive and trying to
register as many as possible for online access.

I am frustrated because Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, Mosby, and Mary
Ann Liebert (to name a few) are charging additional fees for online
institutional access to titles they publish.   I know that I should not be
surprised that they are charging additional money for a site license. I am
just surprised that libraries can afford these fees.

How do you justify paying for the information twice?  I know, as a
non-profit there will be no way we will be able to pay for a journal twice.
Do you have statistics or demands from faculty or researchers?  Are you
getting discounts because you are part of large systems?  Or are you cutting
print subscriptions to pay for these titles?

It seems that we are allowing the publishers to dictate everything.  The
publishers are justifying the costs because the electronic systems are new
or because more people can use them.  I think that is a bunch of junk.  Is
there a way we can force publishers to cut down on costs?  I know our
researches want our library to purchase titles so they don't have to pay for
memberships.  We then pay a higher cost because we pay the institutional
rate for the journal.  Isn't that enough to begin with for more people to
use the title?  Why even more when we want online access?

I know there are no answers to many of these questions.  I just hate the
fact that publishers who don't even care enough about their product to
promise archiving the material online are still controlling us.  No
guarantees from them ever.

Oh well, any help on how your institution is justifying the cost would be
appreciated,

Julie

(My opinion is my own.  My email messages do not reflect the opinion of
ECRI.)

Julia Simoneaux (jsimonea@ecri.org)
Serials Librarian
ECRI, a not-for-profit health services research agency
5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462
(610) 825-6000 V Ext. 5184
(610) 834-7366 F

Julia Simoneaux (jsimonea@ecri.org)
Serials Librarian
ECRI, a not-for-profit health services research agency
5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462
(610) 825-6000 V Ext. 5184
(610) 834-7366 F