COUNTER Update

["Gillingham Emily" <Emily.Gillingham@oxon.blackwellpublishing.com>]

COUNTER continues to refine and extend the scope of its activities in
response to user feedback and has achieved the following important
objectives so far during 2005:

	- Widespread vendor compliance with Release 1 of the COUNTER Code
of Practice for Journals and Databases.  By June 2005 those vendors
providing COUNTER compliant usage statistics represented well over 60% of
the annual output of articles in journals covered by the Science Citation
Index.

	- Publication of the final version of Release 2 of the Code of
Practice for journals and databases in April 2005, for implementation in
January 2006. This includes full information on the auditing procedure
that will be implemented from 2007.

	- Publication in January 2005 of a draft Code of Practice covering
books and reference works.

COUNTER is strongly endorsed by the library and vendor communities.
Membership fees are the organization's only source of income and the
widest possible participation by libraries, publishers and intermediaries
is actively encouraged.

COUNTER now has almost 200 members and is owned by its members.
Publishers, intermediaries, libraries, consortia and industry
organizations are all eligible for full, voting membership. The following
annual membership rates apply for 2005: Publisher �500(US$750);
Intermediary �500(US$750); Library �250(US$375); Library Consortium
�335(US$500); Industry Organization �250(US$375).

The benefits of COUNTER membership include:

* The right to influence the direction and management of COUNTER,
including the right to vote at the Annual General Meeting;

* Regular member bulletins on the progress of COUNTER;

* Advice on implementation of the COUNTER Code of Practice Usage Reports.

To apply for COUNTER membership please complete the application form which
you will find on the COUNTER website: http://www.projectCounter.org

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