print-to-electronic journal conversion project is nearing completion

like most libraries, we have been moving to the electronic format for journal content, rather than retaining subscriptions in print. our library now has a policy for preferring the electronic format, with exceptions. we used duke libraries’ and cornell university library’s policies (http://library.duke.edu/about/collections/eonly.html; cornell’s no longer available) to guide our own.

over the last four years, in collaboration with our faculty, we have been canceling print journal subscriptions if our access to the electronic content is owned in perpetuity. this is the last year of our formal project to convert these subscriptions, and it has a very satisfying ending. as 2011 closes we will have converted 770 journals from print to electronic format, with no loss of content, just a simple format conversion. we have seen a modest cost savings as a result of this project, but it is not as dramatic a result as the knowledge that we are providing journal content to our users in a format that they prefer, with good stewardship to the preservation of the journal content for our collection.

here’s a simple chart i used in a report upon the conclusion of our project.

has your library gone through a similar conversion? if so, would you be willing to share your story? how many journals has your library converted to the e-format? did you accomplish this in an intentional project format, or as a matter of course? were your faculty involved in the decision making?