cooperative e-resource licensing in florida bringing together institutions of higher education cdrs...
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Cooperative E-Resource Licensing in Florida
Bringing together institutions of higher education
CDRS Conference
Florida State University, Tallahassee
March 26, 2009
Higher education in Florida
State University System (SUS) 11 institutions with a total FTE of 187,771, ranging in size from
FTE of 629 (NCF) to FTE of 34,792 (UF) Supported by the Florida Center for Library Automation (FCLA)
Florida College System (FCS) 28 community college and colleges (81 campuses) with an
approximate FTE of 300,000, ranging in size from FTE of 722 (Florida Keys CC) to FTE 49,607 (Miami Dade College)
Supported by the College Center for Library Automation (CCLA) Independent Colleges and University of Florida (ICUF)
28 institutions with a total FTE of 113,454, ranging in size from FTE of 112 (Beacon College) to 18,457 (Nova Southeastern)
No central organization supporting the libraries
Licensing Activities
CCLA and FCLA Have staff positions dedicated to licensing activities Receive funding from the State Government for e-
resources Act as agents on behalf of SUS and FCS libraries for
independently funded resources. This (with a few exceptions) is a relatively new activity for FCLA when position of E-Resources Licensing Specialist was established to handle SUS Library funded e-journal packages
Benefit from State Library funded e-resources from OCLC and Gale through the Florida Electronic Library
Licensing Activities, cont’d
ICUF Director of Stetson Library coordinates annual
database renewal and acquisitions process between vendors and ICUF institutions
Licensing done by individual participating libraries No central funding source, but Stetson acts as
single fiscal agent Success of program is dependent upon the good
will and efforts of a single individual
Challenges of Expanding Cooperative Licensing Ventures
Resolve and simplify legal & contractual issues Reconcile varying vendor pricing models Determine funding methodology and identify fiscal
agent Develop multi-system collection development
process Manage and coordinate communication across
three disparate systems
Legal & Contractual Issues
Do you need a separate legal entity? How complicated is it to create contracts that
cross SUS, FCS, and ICUF institutions? Is it possible to set up multi-year contracts so
that others might join mid-term? What risk might be imposed on the
contracting body – especially when participating libraries might be outside the “system”?
Legal & Contractual Issues: Answers Do you need a separate legal entity?
Simple answer – no How complicated is it to create contracts that cross
SUS, FCS, and ICUF institutions? Not necessarily that complicated Language in a piggyback contract which references original
contract Letter by participating library authorizing the contracting
body to sign on that library’s behalf Signed addendum by each participating library Business terms centrally negotiated with individual
contracts signed by each participating library
Legal & Contractual Issues: Answers Is it possible to set up multi-year contracts so that
others might join mid-term?
Legal & Contractual Issues: Answers What risk might be imposed on the
contracting body – particularly for multi-year contracts? Limitation of liability clause Early Termination Due to Insufficient Budgetary
Allotment clause
Pricing Models
For single institutional subscriptions FTE based pricing – on FTE only, FTE range (e.g. 1-5000, 5000
– 10,000) Flat annual fee Pricing based upon number of simultaneous users. Pricing by institution type (associate’s, bachelor's, etc.) Pricing based upon number of degrees granted in a particular
area. Used primarily for highly specialized databases Often, some combination of the above is used.
For consortia, all of the above might apply, plus Incremental discounts for increased level of participation –
“Buyer’s Club” model Minimum spend required for participation Multi year agreements
Pricing Models: Solutions
Develop general guidelines for cost-sharing between institutions of varying sizes
Establish guidelines for percentage discounts based upon participation levels
Work creatively to develop new models for pricing
Pricing models are ultimately dependent upon negotiations with vendors
Funding & Fiscal Agency Issues Working with centralized funding is the
easiest -- but there is no legal entity established to serve all constituents
Institution serving as fiscal agent on behalf of others undertakes a substantial risk
Not all institutions are funded equally. How do you keep things equitable for smaller institutions?
Funding & Fiscal Agency: Solutions FCLA establish Auxiliary to position itself to
handle more complicated fiscal relationships Develop a proposal for the State Legislature
to fund core e-resource collection for higher education institutions, with mechanisms for participation by all built into model
Explore use of a subscription agent to facilitate cooperative purchases
Collection Development
Current mechanisms for determining databases to purchase CCLA
Conducts online survey to collect interest level of products
Advisory Board process FCLA
Collaboration with SUL Collection Planning Committee/Electronic Resources Subcommittee
Annual review process
Collection Development
ICUF Fiscal Agent polls membership to assess interest
in products Vendors are invited to make proposal and
establish database trial Vendors present proposal at annual May meeting Member libraries have a 4-6 week period to make
decisions for fall cycle
Collection Development Issues
Identifying content that is relevant to the majority Decision making process is time-consuming and
lengthy, with extensive back and forth with both libraries and vendors
Some online resources – such as e-journal packages – require gathering of very detailed title level information from each participating institution
Savings on existing subscriptions may be achieved if new libraries are brought in – challenging in tough economic times
Collection Development: Solutions Form a small steering committee of FCLA and
CCLA Licensing Staff, and ICUF representative to: align and coordinate collection development efforts where
appropriate Set-up joint FCLA, CCLA and ICUF meetings with vendors attend key annual meetings where collections are the focus
ICUF Annual Vendor Meeting in May CCLA Advisory Board or Executive Committee meetings SUL CPC/ERS Joint Fall Meeting
Create a wiki (or other online forum) for discussion among concerned entities
Collection Development: Solutions Develop a mechanism for collecting information on
existing e-resources and unmet curricular needs Hold centralized trials Establish rating criteria to facilitate the decision
making process for adding new e-resources Consider going to multi-year agreements for existing
subscribed content at lower price caps where other savings mechanisms are unlikely to be successful
Management Issues
E-resources require support beyond initial licensing and subscription, such as troubleshooting access problems, managing link resolvers and A-Z lists, usage statistics, etc.
Current levels of staffing are insufficient to support expanded cooperative licensing efforts across the state.
Communication at multi-campus, multi-library institutions can be a challenge at the institutional level, let alone at the state level
Coordinating task and time lines with distant and diverse institutions with their own schedules, responsibilities, subscription terms and fiscal years (ICUF) can be difficult
Management: Solutions
Additional staff would need to be put into place, particularly where efforts are on a volunteer basis
Responsibilities for all libraries and librarians should be clearly defined
Deadlines would need to be established and strictly maintained
A centralized tracking system for contracts and payments would need to be implemented
In Conclusion…
Despite the issues, cooperation is doable Current economic climate provides
opportunities Next steps
Report out to various constituencies Establish Steering Committee Develop a plan of action Establish online communication tool (e.g. WIKI) Begin gathering data about the SUS, FCS, and
ICUF
Contact Information
Melvin DavisDigital Resources ConsultantCollege Center for Library [email protected]
Claire T. DygertE-Resources Licensing SpecialistFlorida Center for Library [email protected]
Betty D. JohnsonLibrary Director and ProfessorduPont-Ball LibraryStetson [email protected]