License Agreements-A Barrier to Interlibrary Loan? Prakash E.R.1,*, Mishra N.K.2, Sharma Saroj3, Naik Umesha4, Swarna T.5 1Technical Officer, Scientific Information Resource Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai, India 2Scientific Assistant, Scientific Information Resource Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai, India 3Scientific Assistant, Scientific Information Resource Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai, India 4Assistant Professor, Department of Library & Information Science, Mangalore University, Mangalagangothri, Karnataka 5Scientific Officer, Scientific Information Resource Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai, India *Corresponding author email id: prak@barc.gov.in
Abstract Increase in scholarly electronic resources and the availability of technology to host the resources have created a situation where in the expectations of patrons have increased to a level where they expect everything they need is possible to have. Libraries are under tremendous strain to keep up with the expectations of their patrons with ever shrinking budgets. Whatever may be the size of the budget of a Library, there is always a segment of information requirement that cannot be fulfilled by the host Library. This segment of information required by their patrons is fulfilled through Inter-Library Loan (ILL)/Document Delivery Services (DDS). Hence, ILL/DDS has always been a part of Library services right from the ‘print only’ days. With the advent of electronic age where the electronic resources are licensed rather than owned, ILL/DDS services have been very challenging with the restrictions imposed by the publishers. The clauses or conditions regarding ILL/DDS vary widely from publisher to publisher. The licensor sets out the terms for what can be used, by whom, how, for how long and at what cost. This work has examined license agreements of 43 publishers. The observations made may be useful for libraries to negotiate better terms and conditions so that an equitable solution is sought for both the libraries and the publishers. Top Keywords License agreements, Copyright laws, ILL, Interlibrary loan, Document delivery services, Publishers, Interlibrary lending. Top |