To buy or to borrow? Evaluating the cost of an eBook in TalTech library

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to find out how much the purchasing and lending of individual electronic books really cost. Additionally, this paper investigates which kind of approach would be cheaper and less time-consuming for library staff as well as library patrons – purchase or short-term loan. Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted at the Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) Library. This is the only university library in Estonia where the Ebook Central platform is adapted on a large scale. For background information, all statistical data of expenditures and average prices of purchases and short-term loans during April 2013 and December 2018 were calculated and analysed. Through a case study, the time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) method was used – all activities related to acquisition and lending of eBooks were identified, recorded in detail and analysed. More specifically, the study concerned eBooks offered in the Ebook Central platform and covered purchasing and short-term loan processes, such as receipt of order request, communication with the patron (if necessary) making a purchase or short-term loan, and feedback to the patron. Findings While analysing the results, it appeared there are many additional activities libraries can avoid during the eBook short-term loan process compared to purchasing. As a normality in TalTech library, purchase is always followed by a cataloguing process which increases the time and cost of this process in turn. On the basis of the current study, it can be said that short-term loan is a cheaper way to use eBooks; many activities related to the short-term loan of eBooks take remarkably less staff time and financial resources than eBooks acquisition/purchasing activities. When analysing the literature reviewed as well as collected statistical data, the problem may arise when the decision-maker librarian is not experienced, professional or long-sighted enough to understand the future behaviour of the patron or the usage of the specific eBook. When the usage reaches a certain point, it becomes an indicator of continuing future usage and so it makes sense to purchase the eBook, as the library pays no further charges once an eBook is owned. Originality/value Most studies reviewed by the author are based on the statistical data collected about expenditure, costs, usage, cost-per-use, etc. of short-term loans and purchases. While acquisitions costs, average cost per acquired item per year and cost per usage are easy to identify, it has been difficult to measure associated costs of acquisition, cataloging and circulation. The TDABC methodology seems to be one of the best tools for understanding cost behaviour and refining a cost system for university libraries. Based on the information known to the author, there is no study carried out using the TDABC methodology for analysing costs of eBook programmes.

Development of Electronic Textbook for Accounting Learning Evaluation Course

“…Electronic student textbook accounting learning evaluation course can facilitate the learning evaluation. The electronic student textbook accounting learning evaluation course can also be used offline via a computer or laptop so that it can streamline the costs incurred by students to take part in learning (Kont, 2020;Nwagwu & Okafor, 2014), such as spending on internet quota.…”

The Activity-Based Costing System Applied in Higher Education Institutions: A Systematic Review and Mapping of the Literature

“…The author with the most articles in this area is Kont K, with six articles How to optimize the cost and time of the acquisitions process" [83]; "How much does it cost to catalog a document a case study in Estonian university libraries" [84]; "What do acquisition activities really cost a case study in Estonian university libraries" [85]; " To buy or to borrow evaluating the cost of an ebook in Taltech library" [86]; "If time and money matter ebook program challenges in Tallinn university of technology library" [87]; "Activity-based costing ABC and time-driven activity-based costing of TDABC applicable methods for university libraries" [88], the latter being the most cited with 10 citations.…”