For each purchase, selectors are balancing the needs/benefits of the particular format (electronic, print, video, streaming, etc.). In general, electronic format is preferred for its wider availability (see specific guidelines for electronic resources, below). Considerations include:
Electronic resources offer wider access (to more users and at more times), and they can offer greater functionality (i.e. full-text searching, combination searching), but for them to be a suitable choice, they are measured against the following standards. It is not always possible to meet all standards, so benefits must be balanced against drawbacks.
Electronic access to books is an evolving landscape and presents many challenges to libraries. To minimize the impact of different publisher ebook models on you, the library favors purchase of ebooks that meet the following criteria,
Some publishers sell their ebook catalogs in collections only. This practice requires that libraries pay higher costs and acquire materials not necessarily well-suited to this collection. Some publishers sell their content DRM-free on their platforms using a collections model, but also offer DRM-restricted content via ebook aggregators. These are all difficult choices for libraries.
In addition to some of the criteria listed in the left-hand column, journals, magazines, and newspapers in the electronic format must: