Challenges to Licensing from Some Publishers

The University of California libraries and the California Digital Library facilitate access to online resources through systemwide negotiation and licensing. At the same time, we seek to influence the marketplace through consortial licensing decisions. We think that we can best serve the long-term interests of UC faculty and students by insisting on resources that meet high standards for content quality, fair and affordable pricing, and licensing terms that allow broad access to our user community.

With a few publishers, these standards fall far short and become roadblocks in the licensing process. The following information is provided to explain to the UC community why systemwide licenses are not yet available for certain online resources. We continue to monitor these publishers and their licensing models in hopes of negotiating reasonable and acceptable terms for UC-wide access. In most cases, the roadblocks to licensing center on sustainable pricing. There are serious budgetary issues facing the UC libraries which are discussed in a related public letter.

Ivy Anderson, Director
Shared Collections
California Digital Library

Current Licensing Challenges

Past Licensing Challenges