For immediate release
November 28, 2007
For more information, contact:
Lee Anne George
Association of Research Libraries
202-296-2296
leeanne@arl.org
ARL Publishes Open Access Resources, SPEC Kit 300
Washington DC—Faced with ever-increasing journal subscription costs and declining library collections budgets, libraries are expanding their collections by making open access (OA) research literature available through their catalogs, Web sites, open URL resolvers, and other resources. While not free to produce, as defined by the Budapest Open Access Initiative, OA research literature is made freely accessible to users by removing price and permission barriers.
This SPEC survey gathered information on whether and how ARL member libraries are selecting, providing access to, cataloging, hosting, tracking usage of, and promoting the use of open access research literature for their patrons by using established library resources such as online catalogs and link resolvers. The survey results provide valuable information for those libraries interested in incorporating OA content into their collections.
The survey was sent to the 123 ARL member libraries in March 2007. Of those 123 libraries, 71 (58%) responded by the deadline. All but 1 of the survey respondents provide access to OA resources; these 70 libraries represent 57% of the ARL membership. The results indicate that although many of the ARL member libraries have embraced a wide range of OA literature and have fully integrated it into their selection, acquisition, cataloging, and promotion processes, others have been less active in this area.
This SPEC Kit includes documentation from respondents in the form of newsletter articles and blogs, open access and institutional repository Web pages, and collection development and cataloging policies.
The table of contents and executive summary from this SPEC Kit are available online at http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/spec300web.pdf.
Ordering Information
SPEC Kit 300, Open Access Resources
Anna K. Hood • September 2007 • ISBN 1-59407-793-2 • 140 pp. • $45 ($35 ARL members)
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SPEC Kits Exchange Information
Designed to examine current research library practices and policies and serve as resource guides for libraries as they face ever-changing management problems, each SPEC Kit contains a summary analysis, survey questions with tallies, pertinent documentation from participating libraries, and a reading list and Web site references for further information on the topic.
Subscribe to SPEC!
2007 SPEC Kit subscription (ISSN 0160-3582): $215 ARL member/$285 nonmember, six issues per year, shipping included (additional postage may apply outside North America).
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 123 research libraries in North America. Its mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is located on the Web at http://www.arl.org/.
