What Cost and Usage Data Reveals About E-Book Acquisitions: Ramifications for Collection Development

Authors

  • Steven B. Carrico
  • Tara T. Cataldo
  • Cecilia Botero
  • Trey Shelton

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5860/lrts.59n3.102

Abstract

To better determine how e-book acquisitions might affect future collection development decisions, a team of librarians from the University of Florida (UF) launched a project to assess cost and usage of e-books purchased using three different acquisitions methods: e-books acquired in large publisher packages; single-title e-books selected through firm orders; and e-books purchased through two patron-driven acquisitions (PDA) plans. The cost-usage data were then sorted into three broad areas of subject disciplines—humanities and social sciences (HSS); science-technology-engineering-mathematics (STEM); and medicine (MED)—and the results were reviewed and summarized. The authors compared the cost-usage data of e-books acquired by the acquisitions methods across the three subject areas and describe how the findings are affecting current and future acquisitions, traditional collection management, and budgeting at UF.

Author Biographies

Steven B. Carrico

Steven Carrico (stecarr@uflib.ufl.edu) is Acquisitions Librarian, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville.

Tara T. Cataldo

Tara T. Cataldo (ttobin@ufl.edu) is Science Collections Coordinator, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville.

Cecilia Botero

Cecilia Botero (cebote@ufl.edu) is Associate Dean, George A. Smathers Libraries, and Director of the Health Science Center Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville.

Trey Shelton

Trey Shelton (tshelton@ufl.edu) is Electronic Resources Librarian, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville.

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Published

2015-07-21

Issue

Vol. 59 No. 3 (2015): July

Section

Features

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