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Pay-per-view (PPV) models for article acquisition continue to mature, but there are still questions as to whether they offer good value to libraries. This study presents the results of a close analysis of a PPV article token report with an emphasis on determining whether purchased articles were available elsewhere in the collection or free via links from Google Scholar. An additional analysis compares article purchase data to COUNTER JR1 and JR5 reports to determine how closely COUNTER reports of downloads align with paid use. Implications for the valuation of article usage and viability of PPV programs are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The NISO KBART Automation Recommended Practice supplies instructions to content providers for automatic, behind-the-scenes transfer of library-specific subscriptions from a content provider to a knowledgebase vendor. These extensions of the well-established KBART (Knowledge Bases And Related Tools) Recommended Practice, NISO RP-9-2014, are anticipated to move knowledgebase configuration activities, which are painstaking and time-consuming for library staff, to automatic programs that can update the settings in a matter of minutes. This increase in data accuracy will result in improved electronic product access services to end users and better information available to libraries for their own collection management activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

“From Picas to Pixels” editor Chad Hutchens takes a look into a herbarium library collection that is quickly being digitized and will be available in the new JSTOR Plants database. Dr. Ronald Hartman, curator of the Rocky Mountain Herbarium, discusses the physical collection of thousands of plants, as well as the scope of the collection. Larry Schmidt, science and engineering reference librarian at the University of Wyoming Libraries, talks about digitization efforts and the development of the Rocky Mountain Herbarium online databases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

University of Houston Libraries established a new organizational structure in October 2021 and created the new Collections Strategies & Services department. This unit undertakes a more programmatic, collaborative approach to collections and begins to address the need for a broad, enterprise-wide document that clearly articulates its philosophy and priorities. In order to learn from other libraries and help develop collection plan or policy, an investigation about Association of Research Libraries (ARL) member institutions' collections policies was conducted. This paper detailed the methodology used to collect these policies, different types of policies and guidelines found on ARL member institutions' websites, and indications and suggestions for future policy development. The authors also called for collective efforts to build and maintain a collections policies bank for the broad library information science community to facilitate further collaboration and communication across institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy issued a new memo requiring all federal agencies that fund research provide immediate public access to resulting research data and scholarly publications. This new memo removes the option of a 12 months embargo, and it extends the requirement agencies with less than $100 million in annual research and development expenditures. This column investigates the possible impacts of the broader policy, including introducing the public access requirement to new agencies and academic disciplines, and how a repository approach to public access might intersect with publisher provided open access. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this installment of "Conversations," Peggy Glahn, associate director for Reveal Digital, discusses her work with JSTOR's Reveal Digital, a nonprofit project to digitize primary sources and make them available via open access on the JSTOR platform. Glahn's interview covers topics about Reveal Digital such as its history, funding model, collections, and what to expect regarding digitizing primary sources going forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When University of Wisconsin–La Crosse was faced with a pandemic-related 20% reduction to the library's collections budget two months into the 2021 fiscal year, it meant painful decisions needed to be made about the library's journal subscriptions. To accomplish this task, librarians surveyed faculty and instructional staff to generate a list of journals essential to teaching and research. Librarians analyzed the subscription status, access information, and usage statistics of the titles listed on the survey. Their findings reinforced the importance of gathering qualitative data from users to inform collection decisions, and the danger in relying too heavily on usage statistics as a marker of a journal's value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Librarians at a large, federally funded, multidisciplinary research organization sought to assess the value provided by the library's collections. One method for capturing this value includes determining how well their library's collections meet researcher needs, as expressed by the materials those researchers choose to cite in the production of new scholarly communications. A cited reference analysis was performed on the publications originating from the institution to provide the necessary data for the assessment, as well as to aid in the creation of a core list of journals which will inform future collection development efforts. This paper fills a gap in the library and information science literature by addressing the citation behaviors of researchers at a large multidisciplinary government research facility, a setting that has not been examined previously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two academic programs had been approved for creation at a four-year public university. Shortly after embarking on a collection and resource review process, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Due to the pandemic, many libraries and academic departments were asked to reduce their overall expenditures. New methods had to be utilized to enhance funding-focused conversations. The use of benchmarking was implemented to identify discipline-specific sources and influence budgetary approval. The benchmarking materials that were generated facilitated communication within the library, the emerging academic programs, and university-level administration. The use of these reports resulted in positive results in this specific case and ultimately led to the acquisition of a large portion of the requested resources. This approach may prove to be useful for increasing understanding across university units and assist with obtaining additional funding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though many library practices and services were put on hold at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, hiring still took place in some academic libraries. This column details the process of remote onboarding in an academic library that was accustomed to in-person hiring and training, and it provides perspective from both the supervisor and the newly-hired electronic resources librarian in the UNC Greensboro University Libraries Technical Services Department. Authors seek to illustrate the process of developing a structured virtual onboarding program, as well as uncover the social challenges posed by physical distancing in a new working environment, and strive to answer the question, how does one become a part of a department when the department itself cannot meet in person? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this installment of "Conversations," Richard Morel, curator of the British Library's Philatelic Collections, discusses his professional background and the British Library's Philatelic Collections, including its history, the collections' holdings, its use by researchers, collection highlights, curation challenges, and the collections' future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This column begins with an overview of an Alma ebook management project from the Electronic Resources Minnesota conference in 2019. Then, conference presenters discuss organizational restructuring from their presentation at the Charleston Conference 2019, which is followed by two more reports from Charleston 2020 conference sessions highlighting an affordable course materials initiative and how to balance user preferences and convenience with protecting a user's private information. Finally, a report from the first Core Conference discusses the new Unsub tool and how two libraries incorporated it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2020–2021, the University of Connecticut (UConn) Library ceased more than 90% of its print journal subscriptions for the general collections. This decision was the outcome of a data-based review and cost-benefit analysis. Staff considered factors such as online availability, number of WorldCat holdings, scan-on-demand and interlibrary lending and borrowing activity, and hidden costs of storage and staff time for processing. Recorded usage proved all but nonexistent, with an annual average use of one per title. Additionally, print journals were inaccessible to patrons because of the closure of library stacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. We did not conduct an extensive qualitative review. UConn Library's decisions broke new ground among U.S. research universities, which have winnowed their print subscriptions over the decades but rarely made a decisive break from print. This article will discuss the project, process, decisions, and data and will share UConn's assessment strategies and criteria for reinstituting subscriptions. At stake was the principle that libraries must use their scarce resources effectively—at any scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Streaming video has increased the size of academic library media holdings, while leaving patrons on their own to find what they need. As a result, media collections are now exponentially larger and richer while simultaneously being less discoverable by students. That's because the way libraries organize this information serves the most information-literate users—while potentially leaving others behind. This session explored the history of library media in an effort to understand the reasons why media tends to be one of the most mysterious parts of academic library collections. It also encourages librarians to assess the accessibility of their own media collections and find creative strategies for making these important resources accessible to all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study surveys the development of collections of foreign-language ethnic newspapers in American libraries and archives since the 1960s. Relying on a review of historical and media studies scholarship as well as library and archival science literature, the article aims to identify the main sources of non-English ethnic newspapers available in the United States and to examine the difficulties such newspapers present for libraries, from older print publications to today's born-digital media, regarding collection development, bibliographic control, and preservation. After a brief historical survey of the foreign-language ethnic press in the United States, the article analyzes the development of library collections since the 1960s as well as libraries' efforts to preserve them and improve access to them. It then evaluates the state of digitization and online availability of foreign-language ethnic newspapers and initiates a reflection on the need to collect current print and digital ethnic newspapers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collection development policies in small academic libraries may lack a formal policy statement about print periodical holdings retention. However, there is a need for a distinct policy about print periodicals holdings and their retention. Periodicals collections at academic libraries have been greatly affected by publishers' decisions to discontinue print journal formats and move to online-only electronic versions. The move from one format to another produces challenges to the retention of an effective print periodicals collection. Given these continuous changes in publication format, it is necessary for academic libraries to rethink their print periodicals holdings retention. This article will present a literature review on and case study of periodicals collection management and explore strategies for developing holdings policies and guidelines for retention. It will argue that collection development policies ought to include a separate policy for the print periodicals collection and that unlike their reputation for being time-consuming and inflexible, periodical retention policies can improve flexibility and guide in decision making, helping to preserve core titles and acquire new titles that support academic programs and the work of the college community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate academic staff's perceived usefulness and expectations regarding accessibility of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) consortium of ejournals at the University of the Punjab. The oldest and largest university in Pakistan, the University of the Punjab was selected as a sample for a self-administered questionnaire-based survey. The results of the study indicated that the majority of the academic staff found HEC ejournals useful for their research tasks; these resources also improved their teaching experience. Academic staff (47%) also found core ejournals relevant to their subject through the consortium. Academic staff, mostly from the disciplines of life sciences, sciences, and engineering and technology, expressed their wish to expand subscription to even more ejournals specific to their discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even prior to the explosion of digitized materials over the last 25 years, libraries sought to accommodate users with disabilities, exploring technologies and outreach mechanisms to ensure all members of their given communities, regardless of ability, could access the books and other content they collect. Policy Libraries do have policies in place, both formal and informal, and these policies are guided by a number of internal and external variables. While policies do exist at the library and parent organizational levels, more libraries need more definitive policies. [Extracted from the article]

In examining data transfer challenges from both librarian and publisher perspectives, this article based on a NC Serials Conference presentation calls for proactive industry communication across publisher, library, and discovery service channels. The authors discuss the importance of collaborative communication across the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CNI-ARL Digital Scholarship Planning Workshop at Brown University, November 8-10, 2017, was an intensive, focused workshop for institutions at all stages of the digital scholarship planning process. This report, based on one participant's experience, touches on some of the highlights and takeaways from the sessions, which focused on campus needs and partnerships; staffing; governance and funding models; the applications of library and other content collections in teaching, learning, and research; student roles in digital scholarship; space and place; and the institutionalization of digital scholarship. A fundamental concept of the workshop was the acknowledgement of the wide variety of models and services digital scholarship can encompass and the critical need for each institution to pursue digital scholarship services that are in line with its strengths and the needs of its particular constituencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of Toronto (U of T) describe their respective library-driven programs to reduce the cost of course materials for students—the Affordable Course Materials Initiative (ACMI) at UCLA and the Zero-to-Low-Cost-Course Program (ZTLCC) at U of T. With the same goal of reducing costs by leveraging existing library resources, each library approaches that cost reduction differently. UCLA uses financial incentives to help drive faculty participation in reducing costs, whereas U of T works to reduce overlap in licensing costs while encouraging use of these already-paid-for resources. The following provides an overview of each program along with guidelines for implementing a similar program. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Collections and technical services staff often rely on costs and usage data to evaluate collections. Featuring data sets recently used to evaluate a publisher package at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, this article discusses how best practices in data visualization can help staff in collections and technical services better explore collection usage and articulate the value of our collections to internal and external stakeholders. Finally, a brief survey of the types of software tools available for data visualization provides a starting point for interested libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The growth in academic programs devoted to the development of video games and the increased use of video gaming in education have led some academic libraries to build their own video game collections, as well as provide video game-related services, space, and equipment. This column outlines several examples of academic library video game collections and services, provides information on building and maintaining video game-related collections, and addresses a few of the challenges of providing services for this rapidly evolving industry. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A doctoral student approached the column editor and suggested that an update on a “The Balance Point” column entitled “The One-Box Challenge: Providing a Federated Search That Benefits the Research Process” (2006) would be of interest and useful to readers, and the editor agreed. Contributors to the original column were asked to reflect upon their experiences with federated searching, including successes and failures over the past 10 years, and to provide insights into future challenges and issues. This edition of “The Balance Point” focuses on the ongoing challenges, lessons learned, possible future directions, and issues involved in providing one-box searching to library patrons. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Libraries are increasingly becoming service points rather than custodians of physical books and journals. At Duke University Medical Center Library & Archives, we came to realize that the space used to house our bound print journals could be used more effectively as student study space. We undertook a comprehensive review of our entire journal collection, both on site and off site. Various criteria, including patterns of usage, overlap, perpetual access, and rarity, were used to determine if we could eliminate or relocate our entire in-house journal collection. By doing this we created a spacious, convenient, and heavily utilized study space for our patrons. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Resource discovery services (RDS), also called web-scale discovery services (WDS), have attracted considerable attention in recent years. This article aims to provide an environmental scan of the adoption of RDS in UK higher education libraries and provide an analysis of RDS resource usage data to gauge whether RDS have an impact on the overall usage of ejournals and ebooks. Findings show that there appears to be a positive impact in most cases, although the extent of this impact varies across libraries and publishers. There is undeniably a degree of complexity in the usage analysis owing to the multidimensional nature of the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses workflows involved with contributing print journal back runs to scanning and storage efforts. The purpose of these efforts was to alleviate space problems in a library by consolidating stacks that were formerly used to house runs of bound journals. This article contributes to the literature on serials withdrawal projects by demonstrating database designs for tracking contributions made to cooperative storage facilities as well as highlighting an innovative solution for tracking the required linear feet for housing bound print collections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spotlight for this edition of “The Balance Point” is on publishing and collection development issues in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region of the world. While reflecting upon recent events in the Middle East and Europe, the column editor began to wonder what impact current issues have on publishing, collection development, scholarly communication, and discoverability of resources from the MENA region, as well as the impact these issues have on the collection development activities of Western academic research libraries. Blair Kuntz, the Near and Middle Eastern studies librarian at the University of Toronto Library, was asked to coauthor the column and to share his insights regarding the region with readers. The authors discuss the myriad issues and the mosaic of collection development issues for the MENA region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the findings of a study of licensed database usage among libraries in the NC LIVE consortium. Researchers developed North Carolina-based library peer groups in order to build context for libraries’ usage data reports and to identify benchmarks and trends across those libraries that are top performers within each group. Additionally, researchers examined the use of selected databases across multiple library types to determine whether certain library characteristics or activities are related to database use. Researchers found that a number of library characteristics and activities predict database use, but the results vary depending upon the type of library and the database studied. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Streaming video is an integral part of the curriculum for many academic courses. While faculty may have used DVDs in the classroom, the increase in online course instruction and the expectations of students comfortable with using streaming video in their personal lives has led to instructors making more requests of librarians to supply films—both instructional and feature—through streaming. Staff at the University Libraries of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) responded to this need as they worked across departments to create efficient workflows, worked with distributors and conducted a pilot project to learn more about the current streaming film environment, established policies, offered technical support, and shared information with faculty by a variety of means. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite their professional training and study in the development of research collections in academic settings, librarians often consult with or even defer to faculty in selecting materials. Faculty often use various methods of evaluation that tend to emphasize qualitative data or even anecdotal evidence. Bibliometric analysis offers emerging tools to quantify these decisions, reflecting fundamental principles of library science. This study compares faculty choices of serials subscription cancellations to the choices that would have been predicted using a bibliometric tool, the California Digital Library Weighted Value Algorithm (CDL-WVA). Faculty choices differed significantly from the decisions predicted by CDL-WVA. However, as the bibliometric score increased, so did the rate of match between faculty choice and decisions predicted by CDL-WVA. Implications of these findings for collection development are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: The Internet, Google, e-journals, packages, e-books and patron driven acquisitions have all been perceived as “a threat to libraries as we know them.” Yet, in spite of these developments and under the weight of chronic budget pressures, the typical academic library now offers more users better access to more content and services than ever before. In this session we will look at how librarians and the vendors that serve them have responded to these “threats” to their future to create new and improved services. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A growing number of academic libraries and consortia are developing their own e-resource knowledge bases. The structure, format, and ultimate goals of their projects vary. If they are successful, these community-driven knowledge bases have the potential to make a positive impact on e-resource management and discovery. A situation analysis of the current state of affairs considers the problems these new communities of knowledge are attempting to solve, compares the scope and approaches of selected projects, suggests opportunities for connectivity across communities, and outlines challenges to their success. This article is the outgrowth of a 2013 North Carolina Serials Conference discussion. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This quarter's column features reports from the New England Technical Services Librarians Spring Conference, entitled "iLibrary: Digital Futures for Libraries," and held May 3 in Worcester, MA; the Acquisitions Institute at Timberline Lodge, held May 18-21 in Timberline Lodge, OR; the North American Serials Interest Group Conference, entitled "Creating Harmony from Dis-Chord," and held June 7-10 in Nashville, TN; and, a National Information Standards Organization Webinar, entitled "Making Better Decisions with Usage Statistics," and presented June 13. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In 2010, the Technical Library at Sandia National Laboratories conducted a six-month pilot study to evaluate various electronic reader devices and their potential for use within the Sandia environment. Five of the most popular dedicated e-reader models on the market, as well as Apple''s iPad, were evaluated for their compatibility with existing Technical Library electronic collections, largely composed of scientific and technical documents in PDF format, as well as their perceived usability by Sandia researchers. This article describes the pilot study including recommendations and suggested areas for further research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

ABSTRACT: In September 2010 members of the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) participated in a patron-driven acquisitions (PDA) pilot to determine how this purchasing model might be adapted to a consortium. OCUL understood that developing a model that would allow patrons to purchase titles for different collections would be complicated. Careful thought went into balancing the needs of individual members with the needs of the consortium. This paper describes the project and examines the results from three distinct perspectives in the hopes of gaining a better understanding of the challenges and opportunities of PDA at a consortial level. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In interviews with the editor, James Danky reflects on the role and future of the ethnic press in the United States, and Thomas Saras comments on the importance and future of the ethnic press in contemporary Canadian society. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In early 2011, an Indiana University Libraries task force was charged with selecting an open source discovery layer to serve as the public interface for IU''s online catalog, IUCAT. This process included creating a rubric of core functionality and rating two discovery layers based on criteria in four main categories: general features and functionality; authentication and account management; export and share; and search functionality and results display. The article includes information about our rubric and the two discovery layers reviewed, Blacklight and VuFind, as well as a discussion of the priorities of the task force. The article concludes with future steps and anticipated highlights for IUCAT. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This article studies the models of consumption of the academic communities of five Spanish universities with regard to the use of contents distributed by four major providers of electronic journals from the time at which subscriptions were first taken until 2010. Similarly, the authors undertook an initial approach to assess the value of the financial investment in such subscriptions on the basis of data from the Spanish universities of Leon and of Vigo. Serials Review 2011; 37:181-195. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The movement to replace print serials subscriptions with electronic or electronic-only subscriptions has been underway in academic libraries since the late 1990s. However, recent research, publishers' policies, and the experiences of libraries that have deliberately chosen to move in this direction suggest that there is a fairly well-defined limit to the percentage of serial titles that can be obtained electronically. This article describes the results of a serials inventory project at the Auburn University Libraries (Alabama) which resulted in moving 56 percent of its journal titles to electronic-only format but left the libraries with 30 percent of its collection remaining in print-only format. Serials Review 2011; 37:174-180. © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OpenURL links provide access to full-text articles from citation databases; however, end users who have found citations outside of library databases must find the full text of their journal articles another way. Many OpenURL link resolvers offer a citation finder service which allows the end user to search for specific known items at the article level. This paper studies the usability of the "citation linker" search from Ex Libris' SFX®. Twenty-one volunteers tested finding known journal articles using both a standard A-to-Z list and SFX' citation linker search. The researchers compare results from the two search interfaces, document the problems found, recommend which interface makes the best default search interface, and suggest improvements to the citation linker interface. Serials Review 2011; 37:93-98. (c) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Washington State University (WSU) librarians expanded the concept of a comprehensive serials decision database (SDD) first proposed by Metz and Cosgriff1 in 2000. Information about subscribed and unsubscribed serials was merged onto one spreadsheet from the integrated library system and subscription agent, interlibrary and citation databases, as well as journal use sources. The SDD, used for selection and cancellation projects, evaluation of electronic journal packages, and collection assessment, was recognized as a necessary serials management tool for WSU. There is a need for the commercial development of products that will replace this manual way of organizing information critical to collection development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grand Valley State University Libraries implemented Serials Solutions'' web-scale discovery tool, Summon, during the fall of 2009. This case study explores whether Summon had an impact on the use of the library's resources during its first semester of implementation. An examination of usage statistics showed a dramatic decrease in the use of traditional abstracting and indexing databases and an equally dramatic increase in the use of full-text resources from full-text database and online journal collections. The author concludes that the increase in full-text use is linked to the implementation of a web-scale discovery tool. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Depressed economic times often lead libraries to consider new practices, including alternatives to the traditional subscription model. This column discusses a pay-per-view (PPV) model for acquiring journal articles whereby a library creates an account with a content provider and then authenticated users can purchase articles at the library''s expense. To gain insight into the current use of this model, the paper draws on both a literature review and the results of a survey assessing the practices of academic libraries with experience acquiring articles through unmediated, user-initiated pay-per-view transactions. The future of the PPV model as well as issues and challenges that it raises are also considered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Increasingly, academic libraries are choosing to discard or place in storage print journals that are now available online. The identification of these titles and related collection analysis activities are often time-intensive. The approach at the University of Saskatchewan Library was to develop an online toolkit that combined available data from disparate sources including the integrated library system, SFX link resolver, and OCLC''s WorldCat and then present them in a collaborative open source environment. This paper demonstrates how the careful combination of existing data presented in a simple online format allowed subject specialists to make accurate print journal deselection decisions quickly and painlessly. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In 2007–2008, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries conducted a large collection assessment project. The Collection Assessment Committee identified several possible ways to conduct the review, one of which was using reports from the link resolver SFX. The committee used several link resolver reports in conjunction with statistics from the Libraries'' document delivery department to identify trends in journal usage among disciplines. The link resolver reports can help identify new journals for purchase and are useful for providing information on user behavior. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This column provides a status update of electronic resource management systems (ERMS) in addition to librarian comments concerning benefits, challenges and wish lists for ERM tools. Nine company/organization profiles are provided based on survey responses: the CUFTS ERM (an open source ERMS developed by Simon Frasier University), EBSCO’s ERM Essentials™, Ex Libris’ Verde, Colorado Alliance’s Gold Rush, HARRASSOWITZ’s HERMIS, Innovative ERM, Serials Solutions 360 Resource Manager, SwetsWise eSource Manager and TDNet Open ERAM. Each profile describes availability, development, use of standards, compatibility, functionality and distinguishing features. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Among the financing strategies available for Open Access (OA), the author-pays business model has received increasing attention. The consequences of this approach, however, for the system of scholarly communication and for publishing houses as participants in value added, have remained largely unclear. The paper presented here, therefore, analyzes the probable realistic magnitude of publishing fees in different subjects, based on empirical data. The paper shows that the most favorable conditions are met in the Natural Sciences and in Mathematics. However, the analysis also shows that publishing houses would have to raise publishing fees well beyond the level that scientists are willing to pay. Furthermore, the analysis leads to the conclusion that the amount of money currently available in the system of scholarly communication is probably not sufficient for the sustainable financing of publishing fees. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The North American Serials Interest Group (NASIG), founded in 1985, holds annual conferences to promote communication among librarians, publishers, subscription agents, and others in the serials information chain. The authors used qualitative and quantitative content analysis to identify the major topics discussed at the first twenty NASIG conferences, to analyze how the popularity of topics has changed over time, and to compare NASIG topics to issues being discussed in the serials literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]