The 2016 Serials Price Projection Report from EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) advises that the overall effective publisher price increases for academic/medical libraries are expected to be the range of 4 to 6 percent (before currency impact). EBSCO releases the Serials Price Projections based on surveys of a wide range of publishers and reviews of historical serials pricing data to assist information professionals as they make budgeting decisions for renewals season.
Academic library budgets are improving slightly within the U.S. while outside the U.S., there is a wide variation from country to country, but there are many instances of library budget contraction. However, even the increased library budgets are not keeping the pace with the increase in serials costs and libraries are working to ensure they are receiving the greatest value for spend.
Librarians continue to analyze the use and cost-effectiveness of purchased content, favoring the purchase of e-content over print, and packaged content over individual subscriptions. E-journal packages are still consuming a significant proportion of library materials budgets and most large publishers remain focused on selling some form of bundled e-package content.
The bankruptcy of Swets Information Services negatively affected many libraries. Although the timing of the bankruptcy mitigated financial losses overall, the situation underscored the importance for librarians to research and understand the financial capabilities of all of their major vendors and service providers.
Currency exchange rates will have negative impact on the purchasing power of customers located in countries whose currency has weakened in comparison to the U.S. Dollar, British Pound and Euro as the majority of major scholarly publishers are located in the U.S., Great Britain and countries in the European Currency Union (ECU).
Although they are based upon careful analysis, EBSCO recommends caution when using these projections, as they rely on historical trends and current estimates. EBSCO will update the projection information if economic conditions warrant it. To read the 2016 Serials Price Projection Report in its entirety and view the Five-Year Journal Price Increase History, visit:http://journals.ebsco.com/products-services/explore-content.
