Using Comparative Online Journal Usage Studies to Assess the Big Deal

Abstract

This paper analyzes the comparative findings of two studies undertaken at the University of Florida Libraries comparing online journal usage statistics derived from COUNTER-compliant publishers. The analyses conducted in 2005 and 2006 were not intended to be rigorous scientific studies. Instead, the statistical assessments were intended as tools for determining trends in the costs and use of online journals at the University of Florida. The studies also explored the relationship between the large publisher online journal packages (the so-called Big Deals often licensed through consortia arrangements) and online journal usage, and the effects of Big Deal packages on library budgets.