Running Head: ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

Electronic Resources: Collection Development Issues for the Present and Future Jayme Johnson LI 855 XA

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES Electronic Resources: Collection Development Issues for the Present and Future More and more the world of public and academic libraries is seeing a shift to electronic formats and increased patron interest in e-books and e-readers. But this increased interest in electronic resources also spells a change in the collection development strategies and policies. Changing from print to electronic formats introduces a whole host of challenges and changes from purchasing techniques and collection circulation to cost comparisons and vendors issues. How can library collection development and management teams prepare for these increasing changes? What are the main issues collection management teams will have to deal with? What changes and challenges will staff have to deal with to remain relevant and provide patrons with the most up to date and requested electronic resources? One of the areas most affected by the surge electronic books and readers is the collection development department. Some of the keys areas affected are interlibrary loan, cataloging, purchasing and vendors, and collection circulation. One of the first and most apparent changes is the purchasing of electronic materials. There are several aspects to this that complicate what could have been a smooth transition. Although many publishing companies allow the libraries to pick and choose the specific titles that are purchased, many companies also offer packaged selections that allow the library the ease of not choosing the specific books. Although this choice does come with a downside since it could include popular titles and ones not necessarily of interest to your patron set. Another change in purchasing electronic vs. print is the idea of purchasing books in a single use or multi-user formats (Romero, 2011, p. 175). If the collection development team chooses to purchase only single use format, that means the electronic book or resources will be lent out as if it

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES is a physical book, i.e. one at a time. But publishers are also offering multi-user access, which means that libraries can offer multiple copies of the same e-book, limiting the time patrons have to wait. This option, while convenient, often comes with a price tag that is higher than the single use access. Another option that is different from print ordering is the option to purchase the e-book in perpetuity or purchase only a license that allows access for a certain period of time. While purchasing the book out right would be more expensive at the fore-front, purchasing a license also come with drawbacks, primarily buying the same book every year and the risk of losing that book if the licensing agreements change (Romero, p. 175). Just as purchasing electronic resources for the library is change significantly, so will how to get the resources to the patrons. Since the object is entirely digital, the most obvious line of circulation will be the online catalog used by the library. The material is displayed and included into the librarys web based catalog. Many of the e-book platforms then direct the patron to download from another website. Changing back and forth between the library web page and the e-book platform has come up against opponents, mostly in the library itself. Patrons that are used to one type of library webpage are becoming confused by the redirection that is needed to download the e-book. Circulation is also effected by the decreased amount of lost, missing, and stolen books. Many libraries provide e-books that contain a DRM (Digital Rights Management) system built-in, this way e-books are checked out to one person at a time and automatically returned after the designated check out date (Romero, p. 176). This change also effects how e-books and resources are cataloged. Since they are not available physically in the library, the cataloging is based solely on MARC and

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES electronic records. These records can cause problems with accessibility when the library website has to direct the patron to another platform for downloading. This fragmentation of the downloading process can increase user confusing and make the process of checking out and downloading e-books more complicated that it needs to be (LaRue, 2012, p. 29). Finally an area that is highly affected by the move towards electronic resources and e-books are the lending of books via interlibrary loan. Interlibrary Loan is an important facet of the library system, if one library lacks a specific book needed by a patron; a simple ILL request can bring that item in from another library or even another state. But as more and more libraries begin to invest in electronic resources, less and less will be eligible for loaning to other libraries. Currently most e-book vendors do not allow for ILL of electronic resources, those few that do tend to sell to academic libraries (Sendze, 201, p. 35). While some of these changes are basic and would not require many adjustments to implement, some might cause headaches for library and collection development staff. Complication and challenges would come from several different areas including; access & availability, cost, e-readers, vendors, and technological issues. By looking at the possible problems that libraries will have with implementing e-books into their collection some solutions might become more visible. First one of the most prominent complications is the availability to some of the more popular titles. Many large publishing houses are refusing to make some titles available through electronic means. In Kansas there is now a Facebook page that is generating some attention to what they are calling the Big Six, these are the six major publishers that are refusing to offer many popular books via electronic means. The publishers, Hachette, Macmillan, Penguin Group, Harper-Collins, Random House, and Simon & Schuster, are

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES either not offering bestsellers to libraries or are increasing the cost for libraries to purchase the books. These tactics are presumably due to the dramatic increase of interest in electronic resources colliding with the publishers uneasiness towards electronic formats. Publishers are most likely afraid of losing control of their offerings, they are aware of what happened within the music industry over the last ten years, with peer-to-peer sharing. Publishers are pulling the reigns in and trying to keep control of their e-book sales with overly stringent regulations. In addition to the lack of availability of popular bestsellers, publishers are also dramatically increasing the price of electronic resources. When compared with both print book prices and direct consumer prices, publishers are charging libraries exorbitant amounts for electronic versions. Douglas County Libraries in Colorado have recently put together a chart showing a few of the bestsellers currently available and the prices for books and ebooks for libraries and consumers, the results are surprising. Of the few e-books that are actually available to libraries, the prices when compared to the consumer price is general 5 to 6 times higher for the library (Gargen, 2012). Not only are libraries dealing with increased prices but they are also being forced to endure caps on the amount of time an electronic book can be in circulation. Many publishers are also enforcing a rule of 26 checkouts. They claim that this is the average number of times a print book is checked out before it is discarded but unlike print books electronic resources do not age or gather wear and tear so usage caps are arbitrary limitations. As of right now publishers have the final say on the price and usage of electronic resources but libraries and librarians are beginning to push back (as indicated by the Kansas State Library Facebook campaign). Those in the

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES library profession need to fight back and demand better costs and options for electronic resources (Sendze, p.35). Some people also believe that e-books and other electronic resources will be the death of libraries. While I dont believe that this is necessarily true, I do think that libraries will have expand their views on what libraries can do for a community and change how they market themselves. Since e-books are electronic, there is no need for the patrons to physically come to the library to pick out a new book. A quick internet stroll to the libraries homepage and patrons can download and place holds on whatever they desire. But this doesnt have to mean that the library as a physical place becomes obsolete. Libraries will still be highly valued and needed as meeting, collaboration, and community spaces as well as places for those who need access to electronic resources that dont have the means (Breeding, 2011, p. 35). Which brings me to my last topic.... E-readers. While electronic resources are handy and easily portable, it also means that you have to have access to a portable e-reader. While prices are coming down, owning e-readers are still a significant investment, one that not everyone can afford. Although some libraries are able to afford purchasing and lending e-readers to patrons, the costs are still high enough that it is not feasible for all libraries. Even though libraries might not be comfortable with purchasing e-readers or dont have the funds to make them available they will most certainly have to deal with the influx of e-readers and electronic books questions about how they work and trouble-shooting. Librarians, who until now just had to deal with computer related problems, are now being asked to know how e-readers work...all of them. With more and more versions of e-readers being released every year, librarians have a sharp learning curve to handle. Teaching the staff to handle questions about e-readers and other

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES types of electronic questions will only increase the reliance on the library and keep patrons returning. So how does this all add up for the future of libraries, when faced with the overwhelmingly growing support of e-books? Will libraries become obsolete if e-books and e-readers take over? No. Libraries still have a vital role to play for the community and ebooks and resources are just another aspect of that. But there are some areas that libraries and librarians will have to work on improving and changing with the introduction of so much e-content. First, training is most likely going to be needed for library staff on the dozens of ereaders that are currently on the market. As e-content and e-books become more and more ubiquitous, staff will be looked at for help. Training the staff to know how to load e-books, apps and just overall trouble shooting will help patrons and keep them coming in for more help from their friendly neighborhood librarians. Second, as the library moves towards more digital content (more digital content, not lack on print books I should stress) they need to make themselves more available as a community gathering place. The community can get to know the library not only for the print and electronic content that it offers but also for the classes, community gatherings and collaboration spaces that it offers. Finally and probably the most difficult to do, libraries and librarians need to assert their opinions and voices into the e-content fray. Libraries are an important place for those who are underprivileged to gain access to the internet, so it seems plausible that in the future libraries will be the place were e-books and e-content are obtained. But we cannot afford to let the publishers and selling companies decide how and what books are sold to libraries (Breeding, p. 26). As James LaRue (2012) states, libraries dont have to sit back passivel y

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES as publishers and distributors unilaterally redefine the terms of our relationship (p. 29). As e-content grows, libraries and librarians will adapt and grow as well.

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES References Bowles, V., & Hazzan, L. (2012). Balancing Patron Demand for All Formats. Public Libraries, 51(1), 3840. Breeding, M. (2011). Ebook Lending:Asserting the Value of Libraries as the Future of Books Unfolds. Computers in Libraries, 31(9), 2427. Collins, T. (2012). The Current Budget Environment and Its Impact on Libraries, Publishers and Vendors. Journal of Library Administration, 52(1), 1835. doi:10.1080/01930826.2012.630643 Fialkoff, F. (2012, April 15). First Harper, Now Random. Library Journal, p. 8. Gargan, Karen. (2012). Douglas County Libraries Report, Pricing Comparison as of October 31, 2012. Retrieved from http://evoke.cvlsites.org/files/2012/10/DCLPriceReportOct-3112.pdf Greenwalt, R.T. (2012). Developing an E-Book Strategy. Public Libraries, 51(1), 2224. Hilyard, N.B.. (2012). Making E-Books Feel at Home. Public Libraries, 51(1), 1720. Hodges, D., Preston, C., & Hamilton, M. (2010). Resolving the Challenge of E-Books. Collection Management, 35, 196200. doi:10.1080/01462679.2010.486964 LaRue, J. (2012). The Last One Standing. Public Libraries, 51(1), 2832. Romero, N. L. (2011). The management of e-book collections and their implication on the economic management of the library. Bottom Line: Managing Library Finances, The, 24(3), 173179. doi:10.1108/08880451111186017 Sendze, M. (2012). The E-Book Experiment. Public Libraries, 51(1), 3437. Wexelbaum, R., & Miltenoff, P. (2012). Challenges to E-Reader Adoption in Academic Libraries. Reference Librarian, 53(3), 270283. doi:10.1080/02763877.2012.678747

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES Wu, A., & Mitchell, A. M. (2010). Mass Management of E-Book Catalog Records: Approaches, Challenges, and Solutions. Library Resources & Technical Services, 54(3), 164174.

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