Electronic journal access: how does it affect the print subscription price?

Area of Science:

• Library and Information Science
• Scholarly Communication
• Publishing Economics

Background:

• The proliferation of electronic access to scholarly journals has altered traditional subscription models.
• Understanding the economic impact of different electronic access types on print journal pricing is crucial for collection development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between types of electronic journal access and the rate of print subscription price increases.
• To compare print price increase rates across journals with varying electronic access models: electronic-only, print with "free" online access, and aggregated electronic collections.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of print subscription price increases for 300 journals over a five-year period.
• Categorization of journals based on electronic access type: electronic priced separately, print with "free" online, aggregated collections, and print-only.
• Calculation and graphical representation of median and mean percentage print price increases for each category.

Main Results:

• Journals offering any form of electronic access exhibited higher print price increases compared to print-only titles.
• Print journals with electronic access priced separately saw increases 3-5% higher than print-only titles.
• Aggregated electronic collections demonstrated a consistent decrease in print price increase rates over the study period.

Conclusions:

• Offering electronic access correlates with higher print journal subscription price increases.
• Aggregated electronic collections currently present the most cost-effective model regarding print price escalation.
• Journal subscription pricing models are dynamic; further longitudinal research is recommended to track evolving trends.