The Relevance of Vendors' Usage Statistics in Academic Library E-Resource Management: A New Zealand Study

Abstract

Vendors' usage statistics for e-resources can be a valuable tool for informing collection management decisions; accordingly, this study looked at their usefulness to New Zealand academic librarians for collection management decision-making. Data were gathered from vendors on usage statistics supplied to the University of Otago for databases and e-journals. Then librarians at academic libraries in New Zealand were surveyed to elicit how useful they found vendors' usage statistics. The study found that New Zealand academic libraries utilised vendors' usage statistics for informing collection management decisions. However, there was no significant correlation between the vendors' usage statistics currently provided and those desired by academic librarians. In contrast to previous work, this study found that the usage statistics desired by librarians at different academic libraries varied, and that customisable usage statistics would be valuable. In concurrence with previous studies it was also found that the lack of standardisation in vendors' usage statistics limited their usefulness and was a key concern for many academic librarians.