Newsletter on Serial Pricing Issues 089 (July 16, 1993) URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/nspi/nspi-ns089 ISSN: 1046-3410 NEWSLETTER ON SERIALS PRICING ISSUES NO 89 -- July 16, 1993 Editor: Marcia Tuttle CONTENTS 89.1 FROM THE EDITOR, Marcia Tuttle 89.2 THANK YOU, Siegfried Ruschin 89.3 A NEW WAY TO SET US DOLLAR PRICES? Rene Olivieri 89.4 "A NEW SUBSCRIPTION PLAN..." Eleanor Cook 89.5 _ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT_ JOURNAL PRICING, Thomas Lindsey 89.6 FROM THE MAILBOX 89.1 FROM THE EDITOR Marcia Tuttle, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, tuttle@gibbs.oit.unc.edu. Housekeeping: Gibbs has installed a new version of the unix listserv, and there are a few changes. The most irritating is that the welcome message for new subscribers has two opening paragraphs supplied by the listserv, and they do not apply to this publication at all. Very confusing! So I have added a top line to my own welcome message saying, "PLEASE IGNORE EVERY- THING ABOVE THIS LINE." I realize that this does not affect most of the subscribers, but it may be of use to some people who have just subscribed or are about to subscribe. 89.2 THANK YOU Siegfried Ruschin, Linda Hall Library (ret!), sruschin@vax1.UMKC.EDU. Thank you for your very kind and generous words that appeared in yester- day's NEWSLETTER. James Huesmann, our automation librarian, alerted me this morning to an "interesting item," but did not reveal more. I expected to see some news from the pricing scene that would particularly delight or, I was afraid, infuriate me. James and most of my other colleagues here are aware that my reaction to some of the publishers' antics has not always been entirely devoid of all passion. Instead, I found your praise of my modest early contribution to bringing the problem of serials prices to our colleagues' attention. If my words were heard outside of the walls of the Linda Hall Library, much of the credit goes to Larry Besant, who told me, at the time, that I had screamed long enough about what I considered inequities and abuses of trust. It was time to act. He questioned my notion that everybody in a position similar to mine surely saw the increasing problem, and he encouraged me to write down and publish some of my ideas and thoughts. My great regret is that, as you say, I have not met you or many other fel- low librarians. I enjoyed the times I talked to you on the phone, and I appreciate the opportunity you have given me to express myself occasionally in the NEWSLETTER. Particularly when he was still in St. Louis, I also often talked to Chuck and learned much from these conversations. But I realize that there is no substitute for direct personal contact. Second hand reports are fine, but they cannot fully replace the stimulation and the correcting effect of personal discussion and exchange of ideas. For the past two years or so, I have been decreasingly involved with ques- tions that for many years occupied much of my professional attention. But I cannot imagine that even in retirement I will lose all interest in them. 89.3 A NEW WAY TO SET US DOLLAR PRICES? Rene Olivieri, Blackwell Publishers, Oxford, England. [Rene emphasizes that the following is not a formal Blackwell proposal. - ed.] I read every issue of the _Newsletter on Serials Pricing Issues_. It is invaluable as a guide to the problems facing academic libraries. I would encourage all journal publishers who want to keep in touch with their cus- tomers to subscribe and to attend the annual NASIG meeting. I learned more at the June NASIG meeting in Providence than in 15 years of publishers' conferences. As one of the relatively few publishers present, I was repeatedly asked by librarians why journal prices have risen so much ahead of inflation, particularly for scientific titles. The librarian from the host university, Brown, claimed that 50% of their periodicals budget went on 7% of the titles acquired. In response, she had agreed to a wide- ranging programme of cancellations for each discipline in accordance with clear guidelines. Unfortunately, "price" was not one of the criteria used. The most "ration- al" response of a high priced science publisher in these circumstances is to play "beggar-thy-neighbor," i.e., each time it raises prices, it in- creases its market share. At this rate Brown will soon be spending 70% of its funds on the same 7% of the list while non-science journals, particu- larly inter-disciplinary ones, lose out. As a transatlantic publisher with a foot in both the US and Britain, Black- well publishers is acutely aware of the pricing problems caused by exchange rate movements. Not so long ago the dollar price and the exchange rate bore little relation to each other. More recently many publishers have started fixing their dollar prices for the next volume on the basis of the rate prevailing when they send out their price lists to agents, in July or Aug- ust of the preceding year. During the last few years this has meant horrific dollar price fluctua- tions. Let me give you an example in reference to sterling. $/L Exchange Rate Subscription Year 1 August 1989 1.67 1990 1 August 1990 1.86 1991 1 August 1991 1.69 1992 1 August 1992 1.93 1993 1 August 1993 1.50 (?) 1994 With any luck the exchange rate in a month's time when publishers set dol- lar prices again will be round 1.50 and, assuming publishers keep their word and that the foreign price doesn't go up by some outrageous percentage (a lot to take on faith, I know), then US libraries should have some breathing room this year. This volatility in the exchagne rate, however, must play havoc with long-term collections management. One way the problem could be ameliorated, though not eliminated altogether, would be for publishers to set their prices not with reference to a rate on a given day but to _the average_ rate for the preceding 12 months. It stands to reason that this averaging should smooth out the extreme fluctua- tions and this is just what we found with we did a crude comparison over 3 years. Of course, it would mean slightly more complex "selling forward" operations for their treasurers but this would be a small price to pay for greater price stability. I'd like to know what librarians and other publishers think of this propos- al. 89.4 "A NEW SUBSCRIPTION PLAN..." Eleanor Cook, Appalachian State University, COOKEI@conrad.appstate.edu I am cross-posting to the pricing newsletter and cni-copyright, with the hopes that it is understood why these two forums seem logical for inclu- sion, since the audiences and perspectives may be somewhat different. We recently received two routine renewal notices for journals published by a small but well-known press specializing in titles on online sources, CD- ROM products and other publications for the "information industry." I spoke with a manager from this company as a courtesy and she seemed hesitant about me naming the company over the Internet. Although I do not think it would be inappropriate, I am respecting her wishes. This company has started including a flyer in its renewal notices offering "a new subscription plan for subscribers who need to distribute articles from on an organization-wide basis." For double the sub- scription price of a given journal, "you will be able to: (1) photocopy any article without restrictions for INTERNAL distribution; (2) electronically capture articles by scanning or keystroking for inclu- sion in an internal database, and; (3) receive TWO additional print copies of sent to the same address as the master subscription." [Isn't that 3 for the price of two??] I found this offer intriguing. The person I spoke with said that the offer could be viewed as more suitable/attractive for corporate subscribers. Developments related to the Texaco case prompted them to try and find a solution that would work for that market segment in particular. (This pub- lisher is also registered with CCC.) As I continued to ponder this offer, I realized that such a plan is probab- ly not necessary in a "traditional" academic library setting. Only very rarely would anyone within my library make multiple copies for distribution to colleagues (usually something of few pages, and usually for a single committee meeting). However, if one thinks about the implications of cam- pus-wide document delivery services (where "internal distribution" could be interpreted as "campus-wide" or "consortia-wide"), or for those cutting- edge institutions where text is actually scanned into internal databases, then perhaps such a plan would be of interest. Let me also note that the journal titles for which I received this announcement are currently right under $100 per year, therefore, the organization-wide licenses would be under $200 per year. What do people think about this kind of offer? Does it make sense, is it appealing, or is it outrageous? I couldn't help but think when I saw it, "that's the kind of license agreement all the prognosticators have been predicting!" 89.5 _ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT_ JOURNAL PRICING Thomas K. Lindsey, University of Texas at Arlington, lindsey@library.uta.edu. I was reading the latest "Catalog of Prices and Services" from the Air and Waste Mangement Association, when I came upon a special subscription offer for the Pergamon Press Journal _Atmospheric Environment_. "If you've heard this one before, stop me," is what some people say when they are about to tell a joke. I wish that this WAS a joke. There is a big shaded box on page 22 with the message about _Atmospheric Environment_: Yes you can subscribe at a 90% discount, Normal subscription rate -- $ 2,000 A&WMA member subscription rate -- $200! Membership in the A&WMA is $85 per year. Those who are not currently mem- bers can join for the period February 1, 1993 to April 30, 1994 at a rate of $118. Since my library is probably paying the regular rate, it makes me wonder what the _real_ value of _Atmospheric Environment_ is. The substantial price differential reminds me of the diamond jewelry that I see on display at local jewelers that is marked down from $ 12,999 to $ 6,999. I wonder what the jeweler's cost was for those items, and the percentage of markup at the lower price. My rose-colored glasses view is that we librarians have finally gotten some people scared, and that now they are really having to sell their products to _real people_, not to a library that will put it on the shelf because somebody might want it someday. 89.6 FROM THE MAILBOX The mailbox is: tuttle@gibbs.oit.unc.edu. >From Peter Graham, Rutgers University Libraries, psgraham@gandalf.rutgers.edu Janet Fisher, the MIT Press Journals Director, said in a recent issue: All this at a time when publishers are being told that increases above the increase in the CPI are not acceptable under any circum- stances. How are we as publishers to move into the electronic age? How are we as publishers to provide publishing outlets for newly established disciplines in order for scholars to publish their research? Her problems sound very familiar to those of us in the libraries who face identical constraints at the same time that we face identical pressures to do more. There seems to be a unity of interests here for working to help universities to recognize their role in scholarly communication at both ends of the process. It has been relatively easy for university administra- tions in the past not to recognize the specific university role in scholar- ly communication; this is unfortunate as the habits of looking at the li- braries, and particularly the presses, as cost centers rather than as fund- amental activities will die hard. The urgency is for presses and libraries to cooperate and not find themselves competing. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Statements of fact and opinion appearing in the _Newsletter on Serials Pricing Issues_ are made on the responsibility of the authors alone, and do not imply the endorsement of the editor, the editorial board, or the Uni- versity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Readers of the NEWSLETTER ON SERIALS PRICING ISSUES are encouraged to share the information in the newsletter by electronic or paper methods. We would appreciate credit if you quote from the newsletter. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The NEWSLETTER ON SERIALS PRICING ISSUES (ISSN: 1046-3410) is published by the editor through the Office of Information Technology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as news is available. Editor: Marcia Tuttle, Internet: tuttle@gibbs.oit.unc.edu; Paper mail: Serials Department, CB #3938 Davis Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC 27599-3938; Telephone: 919 962-1067; FAX: 919 962-0484. Editorial Board: Deana Astle (Clemson University), Jerry Curtis (Springer Verlag New York), Janet Fisher (MIT Press), Charles Hamaker (Louisiana State Universi- ty), Daniel Jones (University of Texas Health Science Center), James Mouw (University of Chicago), and Heather Steele (Blackwell's Periodicals Divi- sion). The Newsletter is available on the Internet, Blackwell's CONNECT, and Readmore's ROSS. EBSCO customers may receive the Newsletter in paper format. To subscribe to the newsletter send a message to LISTSERV@GIBBS.OIT.UNC.EDU saying SUBSCRIBE PRICES [YOUR NAME]. Be sure to send that message to the listserver and not to Prices. You must include your name. To unsubscribe (no name required in message), you must send the message from the e-mail address by which you are subscribed. If you have problems, please contact the editor. Back issues of the Newsletter are available electronically. To get a list of available issues send a message to LISTSERV@GIBBS.OIT.UNC.EDU saying INDEX PRICES. To retrieve a specific issue, the message should read: GET PRICES PRICES.xx (where "xx" is the number of the issue). +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ *****ENDOFFILE*****ENDOFFILE*****ENDOFFILE*****ENDOFFILE*****ENDOFFILE*****