INTRODUCTION. The use of licensed electronic information resources will
continue to expand and in some cases become the sole or dominant means of
access to content. The electronic environment, as manifested by the World Wide
Web, provides an opportunity to improve the measurement of the use of these
resources. In the electronic arena we can more accurately determine which
information is being accessed and used. Without violating any issues of privacy
or confidentiality we can dramatically enhance our understanding of information
use.
The participating consortia
of the ICOLC have a responsibility to ensure that their library members receive
usage information for licensed electronic resources. Information providers
should want the same information to better understand the market for their
services as well as to create an informed customer base. These mutual interests
can be best met by defining and creating a common set of basic use information
requirements that are an integral and necessary part of any electronic product
offering. These requirements apply to vendor operated web sites and to software
provided to libraries or consortia for local operation. Information providers
are encouraged to go beyond these minimal requirements as appropriate for their
specific electronic resources.
The 2001 revision is
intended to provide consortia administrators with the information needed to
effectively carry out their responsibilities and to provide vendors a practical
framework in which to deliver usage statistics in the current environment. The
data elements to be reported have been simplified, while administrative aspects
of confidentiality, access, delivery, and report format have been strengthened.
1. MINIMUM
REQUIREMENTS
- Each data
element defined below should be delineated by the following subdivisions:
- By each
specific database of the provider
- By each set
of institutional IP addresses or other special data element (e.g., account
number), using the institutional name as specified by the institution or
consortium.
- By overall
consortium, aggregated at the consortium level
- By time
period, with a month as the primary coverage unit, aggregated annually as
appropriate. Vendor should also provide summary usage data by hour of the
day. Dynamic aggregation of multiple months or other time periods should
be possible, with no limitation to preset annual or other collective
periods pre-determined by the vendor.
Data
elements that must be provided are:
- Number of Sessions (logins)
must be provided in order to satisfy reporting requirements of government
agencies and professional organizations. ICOLC recognizes that the
definition, collection, and reporting of this measure are subject to
interpretation. In the stateless web environment, statistics gathered as
"sessions" can provide only a rough indication of the number of
actual sessions conducted, thus limiting the overall meaningfulness of
this particular indicator.
- Number of Queries (Searches)
categorized as appropriate for the vendor’s information. A search is
intended to represent a unique intellectual inquiry. Typically a search is
recorded each time a search form is sent/submitted to the server.
Subsequent activities to review or browse among the records retrieved or
the process of isolating the correct single item desired do not represent
additional searches, unless the parameter(s) defining the retrieval set is
modified through resubmission of the search form, a combination of
previous search sets, or some other similar technique. Immediately
repeated duplicate searches, double clicks, or other evidence indicating
unintended user behavior should not be counted.
- Number of Menu Selections categorized
as appropriate for the vendor’s system. If display of data can be
accomplished by browsing (the use of menus), this measure must be
provided. (e.g. an electronic journal site provides alphabetic and
subject-based menu options in addition to a search form). The number of
searches and the number of alphabetic and subject menu selections should
be tracked.
- Number of Full-Content Units examined,
downloaded, or otherwise supplied to user, to the extent these are
recordable and controlled by the server rather than the browser.
- Journal
articles – by journal title with ISSN and title listed
- E-Books –
by book title with ISBN and title listed
- Reference
materials – by content unit appropriate to resource (e.g. dictionary
definitions, encyclopedia articles, biographies, etc.)
- Non-textual
resources – by file type as appropriate to resource (e.g. image, audio,
video, etc.)
·
Number of Turn-Aways, peak simultaneous users, and any other
indicator
relevant to the pricing model applied to the library or
consortium.
2. PRIVACY AND
USER CONFIDENTIALITY: Statistical reports or data that reveal personal information
about individual users will not be released or sold by vendors without the
permission of that individual user, the consortium, and its member libraries.
3. INSTITUTIONAL
OR CONSORTIA CONFIDENTIALITY: Providers do not have the right to
release or sell statistical usage information about specific institutions or
the consortium without permission, except to the consortium administrators and
other member libraries. Use of institutional or consortium data as part of an
aggregate grouping of similar institutions for purposes of comparison does not
require prior permission as long as specific institutions or consortia are not
identifiable. When required by contractual agreements, information providers
may furnish institutional use data to the content providers.
4. ACCESS: Consortium
administrators must have access through a single access method to usage
information for each institution covered by the consortium license. Usage data
for all consortium member libraries should be available to all other member
libraries, unless an individual member library requests that its usage data not
be made available to other member libraries. In the latter case, all usage data
must be reported in the consortium summaries.
Access
to usage information should be entirely separate from access to administrative
functions such as default settings, display options, and time out limits. Access
to institutional usage data should be controlled via either IP address or
password, at the option of the individual institution.
5. DELIVERY: Usage reports
must be delivered via an interactive web-based reporting system preferably on a
real time basis, but at least within 15 days after the end of the month. Report
content should be customizable, as specified in the Requirements section. These
data also should be available in flat files containing specified data elements
that can be downloaded and manipulated locally. Information providers are also
encouraged to present data as graphs and charts. Vendors should maintain a
minimum of three years of historical data.
6. DEFINITIONS: Definitions and
/ or other explanatory material must be provided for each data element
supplied.
7. REPORT FORMATS: Sample summary
formats for a consortium, an individual library, and titles are provided. These
are intended as illustrative of possible presentations of minimum data
requirements. They do not illustrate all aspects of these guidelines. Vendors
are encouraged to provide additional data pertinent to their individual
products and services.
Sample Report
Formats
These
report formats are intended as illustrative of possible presentations of
minimum data requirements. They do not illustrate all aspects of these
guidelines. Vendors are encouraged to provide additional data pertinent to
their individual products and services.
Adopters of This Statement
This statement was adopted
in principle by member representatives of the "International Coalition of
Library Consortia" (ICOLC) whose institutions are listed below. This
statement does not necessarily represent the official views of each consortium
listed. All consortia listed are in the United States unless otherwise noted.
Consortia whose member representatives
have adopted this statement:
As of
February 4, 2002
The Alberta Library
ALICE (Appalachian Library Information Cooperative Endeavors)
Amigos Library Services
ANKOS (Anatolian University Library Consortium)
ASERL
Association of National University Libraries, Japan(ANUL)
AULC (Arizona Universities Library Consortium)
ARKLink
Bibliographical Center for Research (BCR)
BIBSAM Sweden: Consortium of Research Libraries
British Columbia Electronic Library Network (Canada)
California Digital Library.
California State University - SEIR (Systemwide Electronic Information
Resources)
Canadian National Site Licensing Project
CAUL (Council of Australian University Librarians)
CBUC-Consorci de Biblioteques Universitàries de Catalunya / Consortium
of Academic Libraries of Catalonia
Chesapeake Information & Research Library Alliance (CIRLA)
CIC Center for Library Initiatives
College Center for Library Automation (CCLA)
Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries
Colorado State Library
Council of Atlantic University Libraries
Council of Federal Libraries Consortium (Canada)
Council of Prairie and Pacific University Libraries (COPPUL)
CREPUQ (Sub-Committee on Libraries of the Conference of Rectors and
Principals of Universities of Quebec)
Danish Electronic Research Library (DEF)
Fenway Library Consortium
FinELib
Florida Center for Library Automation
GALILEO
Greater Western Library Alliance
HEAL-Link (HEllenic Academic Libraries Link)
Illinois Cooperative Collection Management Program (ICCMP)
Illinois Digital Academic Library (IDAL)
INCOLSA
JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee)
Kentucky Virtual Library
KLN (Keystone Library Network)
LOUIS
Maine Info Net Consortium
MALMAD - Israel Center for Digital Information Services
Michigan Library Consortium
MINITEX Library Information Network
MOBIUS:Linking Missouri's Academic Libraries
NC LIVE (North Carolina Libraries for Virtual Education)
NEFLIN
NELINET, Inc
NEOS Library Consortium
NERL (NorthEast Research Libraries Consortium)
Network of Alabama Academic Libraries
Nevada Council of Academic Libraries
New England Law Library Consortium (NELLCO)
Novanet
NYLINK
OhioLINK
Ontario Colleges Bibliocentre
Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)
Orbis
PALINET
Pioneer, Utah's Online Library
PALCI
QULOC (Queensland University Libraries Office of Cooperation)
RBT, Norway: National Office for Research Documentation, Academic and
Special Libraries
SCELC
SCONUL
SOLINET (Southeastern Library Network)
Southeastern Wisconsin Information Technology Exchange (SWITCH)
SUNYConnect
TENN-SHARE
TexShare
Triangle Research Libraries Network
UKB (Dutch Association of University Libraries, Royal Library and
Library of the Royal Academy of Science)
University of Texas System Digital Library
Utah Academic Library Consortium
Virtual Academic Library Environment in NJ (VALE)
VIVA (The Virtual Library of Virginia)
VOWB (Vlaams Overlegorgaan Wetenschappelijk bibliotheekwerk vzw)
Washington Cooperative Library Project
WiLS (Wisconsin Library Services)
WRLC (Washington Research Library Consortium)
)
About the International Coalition of
Library Consortia (ICOLC)
The International Coalition
of Library Consortia (ICOLC) has been in existence since 1996. The Coalition is an international, informal
group currently comprising over 160 library consortia in North America, Europe,
Australia, Asia, and Africa. The member
consortia serve all types and sizes of libraries. ICOLC facilitates discussion among consortia on issues of common
interest, and conducts two meetings per year in North America and one meeting
per year in Europe. The organization is
dedicated to keeping its members informed about electronic information
resources, pricing practices of electronic publishers and vendors, and other
issues of importance to consortium directors and governing boards. The Coalition also meets with the
information provider community to discuss product offerings and issues of
mutual concern.
More information
about ICOLC can be found at http://www.library.yale.edu/consortia
or contact Tom Sanville, Executive
Director, OhioLINK, Suite 300, 2455 North Star Road, Columbus, OH 43221,
Phone: 614-728-3600, ext. 322; tom@ohiolink.edu
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE
GUIDELINES, PLEASE CONTACT:
Sue Phillips, Director, University of Texas System Digital Library,
University of Texas’ P. O. Box P, Austin, TX 78713-8916,
Phone: 512-495-4350; s.phillips@mail.utexas.edu