National Licensing Forum

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Electronic Purchasing in Collaboration (EPIC) - a shared initiative of New Zealand libraries

Introduction
EPIC is the national e-licensing initiative in New Zealand that makes available a package of electronic resources to all New Zealanders through the consortium member libraries. Through a National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa funded Proof of Concept project, using a competitive procurement process, it was possible to negotiate subscription rates that have allowed even very small libraries to subscribe.

One hundred and seventy six libraries have committed to EPIC to date, and the Ministry of Education has funded access for all New Zealand schools for the first year. As a result EPIC has provided unprecedented access to electronic resources for New Zealanders.

Background In 2002, the National Library surveyed libraries to determine interest in forming a self- funded consortium for the purchase of e-content and to identify the type of content required. A positive response led to the establishment of two multi-sector working groups that developed and made recommendations about possible consortium structure, funding arrangements and content. They recommended that the following subjects were of widest appeal to New Zealand libraries:

  • NZ newspapers
  • General/ Business/ Health
  • General Reference
  • General Science

To take these recommendations forward the National Library agreed to fund a six- month proof of concept project to develop a cross-sector consortium to deliver at least two electronic publications for NZ libraries and their users. This was the PER:NA (Purchasing Electronic Resources: a National Approach) Proof of Concept Project which began in May 2003.

A Project Manager was seconded from another library and multi-sector Steering, Advisory, Technical, Requirements and Negotiations teams were set up. The initial focus was on the development and running of a Request for Proposal (RFP) process that sought to identify and select possible vendors and products.

Three possible outcomes that were identified and built into communications throughout the project:

  • The project may demonstrate the viability of a self-sustaining model going on into the future.
  • The project may deliver the some products but show that a self-sustaining model is not viable for a wider range of products.
  • The New Zealand library market cannot support a national approach to site licences. This is still a positive outcome, as the outcome will be supported by a transparent process and case study.

The following key principles were also emphasised:

  • Collaboration - it is an opportunity to demonstrate that the New Zealand library sector can collaborate, in the national interest, through a licensing consortium;
  • The model must have the potential to include any New Zealand library
  • There should be expanded access to e-Resources for all users
  • The consortium should be financially self-sustaining after the set-up phase
  • A partnering approach with e-Resource providers

The RFP process was run from July-October and was a very intensive exercise. This was particularly so for the Negotiation Team, who committed many hours evaluating products and negotiating with short-listed suppliers.

The outcome of the RFP was the selection of a range of EBSCO and Thomson Gale resources. The PER:NA project team negotiated an 'all of country' deal, meaning every person in New Zealand could access the resources through a consortium member library - be it local library, education library, work library or the National Library of New Zealand.

The proposed deal was put to New Zealand libraries in early November 2003. Libraries were provided with a price range and it was explained that the final cost was dependant on the level of commitment. To commit, each library had to sign a letter of agreement with the National Library. On 19 December 2003 enough commitment was gained to announce that the consortium could be formed. Contracts were then signed between the National Library and EBSCO and Thomson Gale.

Partnering
EPIC has developed a partnering approach with EBSCO and Thomson Gale. Because EPIC is a new concept in NZ there was a need to work with the vendors to ensure flexibility in tackling any challenges or unexpected outcomes. The contracts with EBSCO and Thomson Gale include a schedule on an agreed way of working together that promotes prompt constructive communication and a problem solving approach. It still requires the delivery of agreed content, including increasing New Zealand content, and service levels. It also enables the setting of future goals and targets.

Governance & Staffing
PER:NA became EPIC in February 2004. The resources were rolled out to libraries in April, and the new governance structure was implemented in June 2004. The National Library is currently the lead agency, and hosts the EPIC office.

Strategic planning is the responsibility of the EPIC Governance Group (EGG) comprising 9 sector representatives. In addition to providing strategic direction, EGG guides the operation of the consortium and works to promote and stimulate expansion of the resources to as wide a NZ library market as possible. There is one full-time EPIC Manager role that is funded from the administration fund.

Membership

Library Type Percentage of Total in that Sector
Universities, Polytechnics, Wananga1 , Colleges of Education and other Tertiary 95%
Public Libraries 91%2
Special Libraries (includes Company, Charity, Government, Health and other types of libraries) Approx 32%3
Schools - The Ministry of Education has provided funding for all registered schools in New Zealand for the first year. Schools must register, and sign licences, before they can access through www.tki.org.nz/epic Approx 50%4 registered.
1. Public tertiary institutions that provide programmes with an emphasis on the application of knowledge regarding ahuatanga Maori (Maori tradition) according to tikanga Maori (Maori custom).
2. Seven small public libraries have not joined largely due to technology and lack of technology support in their councils.
3. There is no definitive information about the actual number of Special Libraries in New Zealand so special libraries percentage may not be accurate.
4. Includes 91% of secondary schools

Resources
Over 16,000 full-text titles are available. Databases include EBSCO Australia/New Zealand Reference Centre, EBSCO MasterFILE Premier, Thomson Gale Infotrac Onefile and twelve other Thomson Gale collections including Biography Resource Centre and Health and Wellness Resource Centre.
The resources are only available as a package.

Access
Each member library manages its own access to the resources. This is so they can customise interfaces and access usage reports as they wish. A wide range of authentication options are supported including IP, Referring url, ID and Password, barcode pattern and the use of LibProxy and EZProxy is supported. Libraries are encouraged to set up remote access.

Promotion
Developing EPIC promotional material was challenging because there are so many different types of libraries with different client bases. Also some libraries did not want to provide access to the full range of databases so did not want to do a full 'EPIC' promotion.

To combat this we encouraged libraries to develop their own promotional strategies, to suit their own environments. We did this by providing them with customisable promotional materials, including EPIC posters with blank sections so libraries could paste in their details, generic press releases that libraries could personalise, desktop wallpaper and a PowerPoint template. To support this we also provided libraries with tips on ways to promote electronic resources.

Cost Allocation
EPIC is self-funded by its member libraries. A fair and affordable pricing model for all the libraries involved has been drawn up, based on 10 bands ranging from schools and charitable trust libraries at Band A (lowest) to large tertiary libraries on Band I and the National Library at Band J (highest).

Cost allocation depends on a number of factors: for example, population size for the public libraries and collection budget for the special libraries.
The pricing model includes a contribution towards administrative costs that covers the EPIC Manager's salary, and the costs of the Epic office.
The cost model will be reviewed prior to subscription renewal in March 2005.

Benefits
Some of the benefits of EPIC are:

  • Nationwide access to electronic resources through all types of libraries
  • Affordable subscription costs for most types of libraries
  • Libraries that had already subscribed to the EPIC products could now do so for a lower price
  • Existing consortia were not negatively affected
  • Provision of technical support for libraries
  • Increased awareness of the benefits of e-resources by smaller or less well funded libraries
  • Higher profile for libraries in general, including at government level
  • Greater awareness of the role of libraries and the information resources they make available

Current Focus and the Future…
EGG is currently focusing on consolidation and growth. In particular they have begun a training taskforce to develop a comprehensive training strategy. EGG is also concentrating on new content, funding structures, and strategic relationship building. It has been agreed that EGG will add to the current suite of products with in the next months. They are now consulting with members on preferred subject areas and investigating procurement processes.

More information on EPIC is available at: http://www.epic.org.nz/

Fiona Rigby
EPIC Manager
November 2004
epic@epic.org.nz

With thanks to Catherine Nicholson, SCURL.

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