Moving Forward with Electronic Content Procurement

Over the last several years, libraries have experienced a myriad of changes that have affected the marketplace and changed the way they purchase electronic resources. With the move from print to electronic, the variety of options available to purchase library materials has increased. Acquisitions in libraries have further been complicated by decreasing budgets, fewer staff, new technology, and user behavior. The issues related to electronic content purchasing will be discussed in this article, including an overview of how academic libraries currently purchase materials, a review of issues facing libraries, and a summary of new business models being introduced in the marketplace. For the purpose of this article, we will be referring to electronic resources including journals, books, reference works, abstracting and index databases, and all electronic content in general