UKSG TRANSFER Code of Practice Update

[Ed Pentz <epentz@crossref.org>]

With apologies for cross-posting.  Below is a press release with 
an update on the UKSG TRANSFER Code of Practice - twenty 
publishers with 8,000 journals have now endorsed the Code which 
was released at the end of 2008.  This is a good start but we 
want to get more publishers to endorse the Code so we are 
encouraging libraries to exert some (friendly) pressure. 
Regards, Ed Pentz

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Oxford, UK - 24 March 2009. UKSG is pleased to announce that 20 
publishers have now signed up to its TRANSFER Code of Practice, 
which provides best practice guidelines and outlines 
responsibilities to ensure that journal content remains easily 
accessible in the event of a change of ownership. This means that 
library and reader access to over 8,000 journals will now be 
protected in transfers between publisher signatories.

Major signatories to the code include Elsevier, Nature and Wiley, 
but it is equally appropriate to smaller publishers - those 
signed up so far include the American Diabetes Association, 
Earthscan and the Rural Sociological Society. UKSG's objective is 
to persuade all publishers of the importance and value of 
endorsing the TRANSFER code.

"Librarians must be increasingly rigorous in assessing the merits 
of journals and journals packages for renewal or purchase," said 
Joan Emmet, NERL Program Librarian. "TRANSFER endorsement is a 
signal that a publisher understands its customers' needs and is 
committed to providing a good level of service even in complex 
circumstances. By implementing standards of practice for the 
treatment of transfer titles, the job of keeping track of these 
titles becomes easier both for publisher and customer. The 
publisher who puts the code into practice will help set apart a 
journal/journals package when we are reviewing our collections."

The TRANSFER Code of Practice was developed by a cross-party 
working group to resolve problems encountered by subscribers when 
journals move from one publisher to another. Many critical 
issues, such as continuity of access during a transfer or 
perpetual ongoing access to archives, were previously a grey area 
in journal sale agreements; this resulted in frustration for end 
users and librarians as key e-journals became temporarily or even 
permanently unavailable despite licence terms.

"The TRANSFER code has been extensively fine-tuned to balance the 
interests of its multiple stakeholders," said Ed Pentz, TRANSFER 
Working Group Chair. "Libraries and their users benefit from 
minimal disruption during a transfer - and publishers benefit 
from the simplified workflow and associated reduction in costs of 
a standardised process. We've also taken great care to protect 
publishers' competitive interests. The overall success of the 
Code depends on widespread adoption by publishers so we hope that 
many more will soon show their support for their customers by 
signing up."

For more information, and to sign up to the TRANSFER Code, visit

http://www.uksg.org/transfer

or drop by the UKSG Projects stand (85) at the UKSG exhibition in 
Torquay, UK from 31st March to 2nd April 2009.

For more information, contact:

Ed Pentz
Chair, TRANSFER Working Group
epentz@crossref.org