Published by the MIT News Office at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass.
Published by the MIT News Office at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Cambridge, Mass.
PRICES SOAR Libraries Plan Journal Cuts The MIT Libraries seek faculty advice in identifying which subscriptions to professional and scholarly journals are most important to the community, as a major cancellation program begins because of continuing inflation in journal rates. Anticipated price increases in 1991 range from 12 percent for domestic journals to 25 percent for foreign titles, which constitute about 42 percent of the Libraries' subscriptions, according to Carol Fleishauer, associate director for collection management and technical services. She said the differential is largely attributable to the weakness of the dollar abroad. The Libraries have carried out several cancellation projects over the past decade, which will make the 1991 effort the most difficult so far, Ms. Fleishauer said. Nearly all duplicate subscriptions among campus libraries have already been cancelled and in 1988--the last major cut-- nearly 1,000 unique titles were dropped. The extent of cancellations needed this year will not be known until the Libraries' FY 1992 budget is set, major publisher price projections are received and the dollar vs. foreign currency rate is known. A substantial reduction of titles is expected, however. Library subject specialists are now reviewing price, use and citation data to arrive at a preliminary list of titles for possible cancellation. During February and March, librarians will be contacting academic departments to get faculty input on proposed cancellations. The Faculty Committee on the Library System will review the recommendations before cancellations are implemented. As a long-term solution, Ms. Fleishauer said, the Libraries are investigating avenues that substitute ready access for journal ownership using electronic means. But, she noted, the cancellations necessary this year are likely to have a perceptible effect on the MIT LIbraries' ability to respond to the information needs of faculty and students.