In these challenging economic times, our streets have once again been resounding to the familiar refrain of the protester seeking to redress the cuts heaped on them, and demanding action now.
In our part of the squeezed public sector we are preparing for major journal contract re-negotiations on behalf of the UK academic community and the messages coming from our members is that now is the time to seek redress (“when do we want it, now!”); but in terms of the first part of that famous chant: “What do we want?” the messages are less clear.
Some groups have been quick off the mark and clear to articulate their objectives from these negotiations. Others are biding their time, in some cases simply because they are not sure what their financial position is going to be later this year and what that means in terms of their content budget.
At the same time, Derk Haank from Springer has been telling us that the Big Deal is the best thing since sliced bread and his interview with Richard Poynder has drawn a number of responses from librarians on the listservs, including some who support what he said. The sustainability of the Big Deal and the credible alternatives to this model will no doubt form a key part of our negotiations with publishers over the next few months.
Since last summer, JISC Collections has been seeking to engage our members in a debate about what we need to achieve from the major re-negotiations we are poised to commence. We appreciate the feedback we have received from across the whole of the sector and will be seeking to address all of the issues raised in our discussions with publishers. Our discussions with you are ongoing and two SCONUL workshops in February will ensure that this debate continues.
Negotiations stretching out over a period of months quite often take a number of unexpected twists and turns that nobody can plan for in advance. During these times, good communication is critical for keeping all stakeholders on board and giving us any chance of achieving an agreement that meets members’ needs. We will be using all the appropriate channels to keep members appraised of the progress of our negotiations and we look forward to maintaining the constructive dialogue and feedback from you that has been so instructive in this pre-negotiation phase.
Paul Harwood
Deputy CEO, JISC Collections
