National Licensing Forum

MAKING ONLINE INFORMATION FOR ALL AUSTRALIANS A REALITY.

A PROPOSAL BY THE NATIONAL LICENSING REFERENCE GROUP TO ALL AUSTRALIAN LIBRARIES.

Issues paper. July 2005
Executive Summary
Background
1. Objectives for a national licence.
2. Benefits of a national licence.
3. Governance Models.
3.1 Structure.
4. Charging/Funding Models.
5. Content/Product Range.
6. Administration, Communication and Marketing.
7. Your Input.
8. Further Discussion.


Appendices
Appendix 1. Suggested funding model for an Australian licence.
Appendix 2. Membership and terms of reference of the National Licensing Reference Group as at June 2005.
Appendix 3. Recommended background readings on a "national licence."

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

With the support of the National Library of Australia, a reference group comprising representatives from many of the country's peak library bodies has been investigating the feasibility of creating a national, cross-sectoral libraries consortium. The principal goal of the proposed consortium is to negotiate and purchase national licences for certain key online information resources identified as being of central importance to meeting the information needs of Australians. This proposal is in accordance with Recommendation 9 of the Senate's October 2003 report on the Role of Libraries in the Online Environment.

The issues paper considers the objectives and benefits of a national licensing initiative and the associated issues of governance, funding models, the type of resources that have been selected, administration, communication and ways of seeking input from Australian libraries.

The paper argues that the creation of a cross-sectoral libraries consortium to negotiate and purchase national level licences is not only achievable but essential in delivering vital online information to all Australians, irrespective of their geographic location, social status, occupation or age.

The social and economic benefits to the Australian Commonwealth and the community would be significant, visible and immediately realisable.

Implementing a nation-wide initiative to facilitate public access to key online information resources would also significantly enhance the professional and political status of Australian libraries. In turn, this can only strengthen the social and financial standing of libraries as integral to Australia's information economy and its social infrastructure.

The paper explores ways and means by which to reach these outcomes. It encourages all libraries to respond and participate, through their representative bodies, in a forthcoming National Library forum on the national licensing initiative in October 2005.


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BACKGROUND

The report on The Role of Libraries in the Online Environment by the The Senate Environment, Communications, Information Technology and the Arts Reference Committee in late 2003 included:

"Recommendation 9.
The Committee recommends:

  • (a) that the National Library of Australia identify a number of key databases for which national site licensing might be desirable; and
  • (b) that additional Australian Government funding be extended to the National Library of Australia for this purpose."

In response to this report the National Library has initiated discussions with all Australian library sectors to investigate the level of interest and commitment towards developing a proposal to purchase a core set of electronic resources that will be available to all Australians.

At present some library sectors acquire online databases through consortia. However, many libraries are unable to participate in consortia or purchase significant electronic resources because of limited funding. A national consortium would have significant benefits in minimising duplication of effort in acquiring resources and would also enable more libraries to have access to electronic resources.


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INTRODUCTION

In an era of the Internet and ever-expanding electronic services direct and immediate access to online information is fundamental to a well-informed, educated, economically competitive and democratic society. The National Library of Australia is committed to working with many of the peak representative organisations for Australian libraries to achieve free and equitable access to a wide range of information resources for the general community. This commitment is based on the belief that access to a variety of sources of information is now essential to the well being of Australians, regardless of their age, occupation, socio-economic status or geographic location.

As a first step towards realising this goal, a National Licensing Reference Group (NLRG) was established in early 2005 to commence planning. The reference group comprises nominees from:

  • National Library of Australia (NLA)
  • Council of Australian University Librarians (CAUL),
  • Australian Government Libraries Information Network (AGLIN)
  • Council of Australian State Libraries (CASL)
  • Public Libraries Australia (PLA)
  • Australian School Library Association (ASLA)
  • Health Libraries Australia (HLA)
  • Gulliver (Victorian public libraries network)
  • Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA).

The national licensing initiative envisages the provision of a set of core, authoritative online information resources for the Australian community through national level licensing agreements. The resources will be available to users of libraries in all sectors, be they national, state, public, university, special or TAFE. The following sections outline the principal objectives and benefits to be gained by national licences for a range of electronic resources. In conjunction with this paper financial information to underpin this proposal is currently being sought and discussions held with selected vendors to determine the commercial feasibility of national licensing agreements. The paper also suggests a governance and administrative structure to implement and administer this national initiative.

The National Licensing Reference Group has written this paper to determine the level of interest and support for the proposed national licensing initiative among the general Australian library community.

Feedback will be warmly welcomed.


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1. OBJECTIVES FOR A NATIONAL LICENCE

The goal of the national licence is to provide all Australians with authoritative, online information resources that will contribute to the social, educational and economic well-being of the community. The licence would aim to:

  • enable all Australians, regardless of geographic location, to access quality online information resources in a manner that is both socially equitable and economically sustainable;
  • create a collaborative partnership between libraries across the nation for their mutual benefit and that of their users;
  • achieve an economically self sufficient and fully funded consortium;
  • coordinate the cost effective purchasing of online resources for all library sectors;
  • promote at a national level the exchange of ideas and views between consumers, libraries, funding providers, publishers and vendors.

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2. BENEFITS OF NATIONAL LICENSING

The national licence initiative offers significant potential benefits for Australians and their libraries. These are:

  • Australians across all rural, regional and urban areas, all social groups and diverse community organisations would have access to quality online resources through all types of libraries.
  • Australians would benefit through access to information that supports business, vocational, government, educational and community activities.
  • The licence would be a very tangible step towards overcoming the isolation experienced daily by those living in rural and remote regions of Australia by facilitating their access to reliable and readily available information sources.
  • Significant business opportunities and economies of scale would be offered to publishers and suppliers of Australian online resources through access to national markets.
  • The bargaining position of libraries would be strengthened by negotiating as a consortium, offering vendors economies of scale and single-point purchasing. Subscriptions to their online resources would become more affordable for libraries, and this benefit would flow on to their users in improved services.
  • The broader Australian community would become more aware of the benefits of electronic resources and so make more effective and profitable use of them.
  • Libraries would acquire a higher profile at all levels of government.

The national licence initiative opens the way to producing a framework for the creation of licences across different library sectors that satisfy the needs of libraries, consumers and vendors. It will facilitate the creation of mutually effective agreements between all interested parties with regard to costs, access principles, authentication and performance measurements. This initiative would promote a greater consistency in the development and application of technical and contractual criteria, and hence, improved access and authentication to electronic information across all library sectors.


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3. GOVERNANCE MODEL

Implementing and maintaining a national licence will require a formal administrative structure. The reference group has examined local and overseas models for such a structure. An attractive model is the New Zealand Electronic Purchasing In Collaboration (EPIC) service, which is based on a national approach with participation by libraries in all sectors.

The EPIC service :

  • is a national electronic licensing initiative involving 176 libraries in all sectors: academic, vocational education, specials, public, schools, health (information as at November 2004);
  • makes a variety of electronic resources available to all New Zealanders;
  • has the National Library of New Zealand as the lead agency;
  • has an administrative support team with a manager hosted at the National Library;
  • has a steering committee (the EPIC Governance Group) with representatives from all library sectors;
  • is fully funded by member libraries (and, in one case, by a government department) on behalf of all libraries;
  • covers the purchase of products and the position of full time EPIC manager through funding from its members.

An Australian national consortium should have a broadly similar basis, making allowance for the three tiers of government and some other differences in Australia.

The reference group suggests that an Australian national consortium might have the following governance:

  • libraries in all sectors able to join the national electronic licensing initiative;
  • administrative support is hosted at the National Library;
  • the purchase of products and the position of full time manager will be funded through library subscriptions;
  • the National Library of Australia acts as the lead agency;
  • a steering committee with representatives drawn from library sectors;
  • libraries to provide all initial funding, but with a view to seeking other funding sources for the consortium in the longer term.

The Steering Committee's terms of reference might be to:

  1. provide strategic direction for an Australian national licence consortium;
  2. undertake the management of the consortium. This would include the development of sustainable financial models, monitoring agreements and financial management;
  3. establish sub-committees for advice as required, including content development and communications;
  4. promote and develop the range of products acquired;
  5. liaise with all Australian library sectors and libraries on the development of the consortium and on issues in negotiating licences for electronic products.

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3.1 STRUCTURE

As a point of departure the Steering Committee's membership might be drawn from the peak bodies represented on the National Licensing Reference Group, together with any other library forums or associations that have substantial national membership.

If this is seen as too unwieldy, then the governing committee might be limited to one nominee each from AGLIN, CAUL, NLA, ALIA, CASL, ASLA, PLA, HLA, TAFE and special libraries, with a maximum of ten members, to facilitate a managerially coherent structure. All members would have equal voting rights.

To encourage the widest possible input from members, sector based advisory groups elected by their membership at large, similar to the Kinetica model, would meet periodically to furnish advice to the governing committee. Wider state-based forum meetings could also be convened as a channel to facilitate communication between the proposed consortium and individual libraries.

Consideration could also be given to the formation of a consortium Standing Advisory Committee with representatives from all major library sectors and vendors. This could act as a forum for discussion on policy and purchasing negotiations more widely. One of the major roles of the consortium is to improve mutual understanding between libraries, vendors and funding authorities on each group's respective needs and concerns. It should be noted that the lack of any definite mechanism at the national level to promote regular contacts between these three key components of the information supply chain is a critical weakness in Australia. The consortium could go a long way to addressing this communication shortfall.


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4. CHARGING/FUNDING MODELS

Clearly, funding will be crucial to the success or otherwise of any national consortium. A funding model is proposed in Appendix 1. The Group recommends that four basic principles would apply:

  • fees and contributions should be proportionate to the ability of various sized libraries to pay, and be seen as equitable by all participating institutions, large or small;
  • fees should cover all necessary administrative overheads for the consortium's operations. The membership fees levied must be sufficient to ensure sustainable self- funding of services in the longer term;
  • if government grants are received to assist with the initial implementation of this project, then members must understand that sustainability will be a key issue for its future development;
  • organisations already involved with existing consortia should not be financially disadvantaged by the national licensing initiative.

The funding/charging model in Appendix 1, raise a number of issues, including:

  • across library sectors and amongst their user communities (existing consortia - such as the CASL, CAUL and Gulliver consortia - have differing models);
  • the type of funding model will need to be determined for any core set of resources, e.g. it could be based on size of library with a range of tiers;
  • a suitably flexible funding model will need to be negotiated with participants for any opt in/opt out deals;
  • the possibility of reimbursing an existing entity, such as CAUL or CASL, to act as an administrative agent for the consortium.

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5. CONTENT/PRODUCT RANGE

Based on the discussions at the December 8 forum last year, the National Licensing Reference Group has recommended that, in the first instance, the selection and purchase of online resources ought to concentrate on a core set of full text (i.e. not bibliographic) databases. Such databases would be Australian in content and likely to command a high level of interest across library sectors and amongst their user communities. This recommendation is made in the belief that such an approach is the one most likely to attract the widest spectrum of support and may offer the best prospect of securing external funding, for at least the initial establishment phase.

The decision making process for the selection of materials could be based on a group consensus model, either through the suggested governance group or a dedicated working group. The core set could then be expanded in time with an opt in / opt out model for the purchase of more sector-specific products. All considered products would undergo an extensive evaluation process.

Once a consortium is created it is proposed that the most appropriate core products are identified speedily and negotiations for purchase are concluded as quickly as practicable. This is to ensure that the project maintains its momentum and that the concept becomes operational by the end of 2006. The future selection and expansion of resources will be far easier for current and potential participants to accomplish once a practical service is in place.

The specific type of products suggested for the consortium in the establishment phase are:

  • APAFT ( Australian Public Affairs Full Text);
  • a product with extensive Australian newspaper coverage;
  • a health product.

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6. ADMINISTRATION, COMMUNICATION AND MARKETING

The membership of the consortium and its governance group would have to consider a range of issues in relation to the administration of resources, communication with all interested parties, marketing services to both users and funding sources, and associated budgetary matters. Much of the detail would have to be determined at a later stage; but initially the following issues need to be taken into account:

  • information on usage (based on COUNTER wherever possible) will be required to demonstrate the effectiveness of the consortium and to monitor uptake;
  • the consortium would need administrative support to develop work plans, negotiate trial access to resources, negotiate licences and generally support the governance group by arranging teleconferences and meetings;
  • the need, role and scope of a national model licence drafted or endorsed by the consortium should be examined as a priority. Matters to be considered for such a model licence would include the establishment of appropriate service levels for access and authentication to online resources, privacy issues and the application of copyright in accordance with Australian law;
  • the contribution of libraries to the consortium in delivering access to various products has to be emphasised and made visible through marketing strategies;
  • marketing information and communications have to be developed and shared to ensure that as many library users as possible are aware of the products available through the consortium;
  • branding will also need to be addressed as a significant part of communication;
  • effective communication with Australian libraries will also be vital for the success of the consortium.

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7. YOUR INPUT

This paper has been prepared to provide information on a proposed Australian national licence for a set of electronic resources for all Australians. The paper presents the reasons, the requirements and the benefits of a national consortium for providing access to online information resources for the Australian community and for organisations, governments and libraries of all disciplines. It does not seek to impose a single approach to reaching this goal, merely to stimulate debate on the whys and hows to achieve that goal.

The National Licensing Reference Group now seeks your input and feedback to determine:

  • whether the majority of Australian libraries are interested in and would support a national licence;
  • your views on the proposed model, including governance and funding;
  • any issues you would particularly like to comment on, relating either to the proposed model or to alternative approaches.
  • what, in the above proposals, would not work for your library or your sector.

Comments can be made through a web form at http://www.nla.gov.au/initiatives/meetings/sitelicense/comments.html or by email to caslconsortium@nla.gov.au. If you wish to discuss this with a member of the working group please contact them directly - members are listed in appendix 2.


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8. FURTHER NATIONAL DISCUSSION

The National Library will be holding a second forum on national licences on 12 October 2005 to which all representative bodies will be invited. The forum will consider:

  1. the final report of the National Licensing Reference Group. This will include information collected on the degree of support for the concept of national access to a range of online information resources beneficial to the Australian public as a whole;
  2. the future direction for the development of a national licence initiative that would be achievable in the near future through collaboration between all library sectors.

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Appendix One: Suggested funding model for an Australian Licence

The principles for the funding model for the Australian National Licence are:

  • fees levied must be sufficient to ensure sustainable self-funding;
  • fees will cover licensing of products and funding for administrative support;
  • for existing subscribers to products the licence will minimise additional costs;
  • for new subscribers the licence will obtain best possible price;
  • the funding model must offer flexibility to meet the needs of particular sectors, for example if state or Commonwealth funding is available;
  • annual fees need to be set to enable budgeting by members;
  • libraries may choose to join the consortium.

The financial mode proposed offers a set of cost bands based on the size of the library, measured by a sector specific indicator. The costs bands were developed in consultation with library sectors.

Band Description Indicator Comments
Schools Small schools FTE Student size
Up to 300
ABS, DEST and AEU all use student population in determining categories of schools. ASLA supports this method.
Medium schools FTE Student size
301 to 800
Large schools FTE Student size
801+
Specials
Both not for profit and profit
Very small special library Acquisitions budget < $49,999
Small special library Acquisitions budget
$50,000 - $99,999
Medium special library Acquisitions budget
$100,000 - $199,999
Large special library Acquisitions budget
$200,000 - $299,999
Very large special library Acquisitions budget > $300,000
Public libraries Very small public library Population < 1,999
Small public library Population
2000 - 9,999
Medium public library Population
10,000 - 49,999
Upper medium public library Population
50,000 - 149,999
Large public library Population
150,000 -500,000
Very large public library Population > 500,000
State and national libraries Small ACT Territory Library and Information Service
Northern Territory Library and Information Service
State Library of Tasmania
Medium State Library of South Australia
State Library of Queensland
State Library of Western Australia
Large National Library of Australia
State Library of New South Wales
State Library of Victoria
University libraries Small university library < 10,000 FTE This is one of many models that could be applied.
Medium university library < 15,000 FTE
Large university library < 23,000 FTE
Very large university library > 23,000 FTE
TAFE Small Effective Full time student size
Up to 3700
Effective Full Time (EFT) = Student Contact Hours = 540
Medium Effective Full time student size
3701 to 9250
Large Effective Full time student size 9251 +

Appendix Two: Membership and terms of reference of the National Licensing Reference Group as at June 2005

Terms of Reference

* determine the level of interest from libraries in a National Licence.
* develop a set of principles for a NationalLicence.
* establish a core set of Australian electronic resources for a National License that the library sector is willing to support.
* develop recommendations for the National Site Licensing Forum on 12 October 2005

Members of the Reference Group

Convenor
Karen Vitullo (AGLIN), Director, Library and Extension Services, Australian Bureau of Statistics
karen.vitullo@abs.gov.au

ALIA representative
Richard Sayers, Convenor, ALIA Purchasing and Consortia Reference Group
rsayers@aapt.net.au

ASLA representative
Lorene Furmage, Projects Councillor, ASLA
lorene.furmage@education.tas.gov.au

CASL representative
Oliver Mann, Convenor, CASL Consortium
caslconsortium@nla.gov.au

CAUL representatives
Diane Costello, Executive Officer, CAUL
Diane.Costello@caul.edu.au
Heather Gordon, Executive Director, Information Services, University of the Sunshine Coast
hgordon@usc.edu.au

Health Libraries Australia representative
Lindsay Harris, Library Manager,The Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Lindsay.Harris@nwahs.sa.gov.au

NLA representative
Roxanne Missingham, Assistant Director-General, Resource Sharing
rmissingham@nla.gov.au

Public Libraries Australia representatives
Robert Knight, Director, Riverina Regional Library
knightr@wagga.nsw.gov.au
Lynne Makin, Executive Officer/Company Secretary, Public Libraries Australia
lynnema@umrl.nsw.gov.au

Viclink/Gulliver representative
Julie Rae, CEO & Regional Library Manager, Central Highlands Regional Library
Julie.Rae@chrlc.vic.gov.au


Appendix Three: Recommended background readings on national licensing.

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