The economic impact of an electronic journal collection on an academic library

Abstract

This paper provides information on the economic impact of the transition from print to electronic journals in an academic library. The technological orientation of the university and a robust network infrastructure have made it possible for Drexel to make this transition more quickly than most, if not all, U.S. academic libraries. Shifts in costs occur in all budget areas: capital (space and network infrastructure), staffing, purchased services, materials, supplies and equipment. Overall, costs are higher, but preliminary data indicates that in Drexel’s case per journal and per article costs are lower.