Cost Models and Accounting in MeDoc

MeDoc has developed cost and payment models suitable for electronic library services. The partners cooperating in the MeDoc service are users, providers and producers of information products. The cost models offered to the users are various forms of subscription and "pay per view"-purchase. As payment models both credit and debit models are considered suitable for the MeDoc service. Initially only registered users are admitted to the MeDoc library, so the users can be charged via accounts. Currently a clearing agency handles the actual invoice process for the MeDoc service. The mechanisms described are implemented and evaluated in the MeDoc prototype. 1 Introduction The MeDoc service provides a distributed electronic full-text library of high quality computer-science literature. This library can only be furnished with commercial products, if usage is billable and protected. The involvement of commercial partners that contribute their standard offer in books and journals requi..