Re: ebook acquisition collectives

["Michael Zeoli" <mzeoli@ybp.com>]

Todd,

This is in fact happening.  At ALA annual many of the leading 
academic consortia (big and small) met with a group of university 
and trade press representatives to discuss these issues.  It was 
a stepping stone and there will be more given the complexities 
and competing agendas, but the discussions and even some projects 
are already afoot.

Michael Zeoli
Director, Academic Library Consortia
YBP Library Services

----- Original Message -----
From: owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu <owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu>
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu <liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu>
Sent: Thu Aug 12 17:29:45 2010
Subject: RE: ebook acquisition collectives

It seems to me that the Libraries are still having trouble
switching their budget to apply to PRINT and E-Books equally.
Not making any differentiation between them.  If that is done
they may actually find the money.

However, I must point out a few nuances of my logic - by
substituting some my own words.

1 - Ideally, libraries should be providing access to content to
_their patrons_ at no additional charge. ( No library I know
actually identifies "anyone" as their patron. Patrons do
actually to pay for the resources through taxes, tuition, or
company funds, etc.)

2 - Therefore, libraries should be trying to acquire rights to
give ebooks by the most cost efficient means for the institution,
library and patron.

3 - For ebooks, the coexistence of free access and toll access to
a particular work _can be_ problematic

4. Every publisher has his _cost_ for any book.

5. The way for libraries to meet the publishers price for most
books is to organize into a cooperative.

6. The amount of money libraries spend on books _may be_
sufficient to acquire outright many works sold mostly to libraries.

Yet the question still remains :

7. So... why isn't this happening?

TJP


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
[mailto:owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu] On Behalf Of Eric Hellman
Sent: Wednesday, August 11, 2010 5:54 PM
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
Subject: ebook acquisition collectives

I've been exploring the possibilities for open-access ebook
acquisition collectives, with a bit of a twist.

My logic goes like this.

1. Ideally, libraries should be providing access to content to
anyone for free
2. Therefore, libraries should be trying to acquire rights to
give ebooks to anyone for free.
3. For ebooks, the coexistence of free access and toll access to
a particular work is problematic
4. Every publisher has his price for any book.
5. The way for libraries to meet the publishers price for most
books is to organize into a cooperative.
6. The amount of money libraries spend on books is sufficient to
acquire outright many works sold mostly to libraries.
7. So... why isn't this happening?

http://go-to-hellman.blogspot.com/2010/08/library-monopsony-for-monographic-ebook.html

Eric Hellman
President, Gluejar, Inc.
Montclair, NJ