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Date: Tue, 9 Oct 2012 11:00:47 +0200

PRESS RELEASE

De Gruyter Presents New Model for Digital Content Distribution –
Patron Driven Acquisition Offers Libraries Considerable Benefits

Berlin, 4 October 2012 – The idea behind Patron Driven Acquisition
(PDA) is simple: to offer users access to all digital content, but
only charge for actual use. In partnership with the University of
Hagen, Jülich Research Center, and University of Mannheim, De Gruyter
recently completed a one-year trial of PDA, an innovative form of
distribution that provides users with full content access prior to
purchase. Based on the insights of this trial, De Gruyter has
developed a new and consistent PDA model, which it is showcasing at
the Frankfurt Book Fair.

The trial focused on answering three questions that have concerned
libraries and publishers: Is Patron Driven Acquisition an economically
sustainable strategy for both publishers and libraries? What metrics
for determining PDA fees, such as usage levels or the size of the
library, are applicable to the market as a whole? How should the PDA
service be structured when offered by a publisher, in contrast to
retailers and aggregators? The trial was supervised by Prof. Michael
Seadle, Director of the Berlin School for Library and Information
Science at the Humboldt University of Berlin.

"PDA is an excellent model for providing academic content to research
institutes in a particularly cost-effective way," says Katrin Siems,
Vice President of Marketing & Sales at De Gruyter. "During the trial
we witnessed an increase in usage statistics for our content, and,
based on the trial's insights, have developed a distribution model
that is oriented to the needs and concerns of libraries."

Libraries can rent full access to over 450,000 journal articles and
book chapters as well as over 15 million database entries. At the end
of the rental period the paid fees can then be applied to the purchase
of desired content. "The advantages are clear," Katrin Siems explains.
"Libraries are able to provide their users with a large volume of
content, but have the flexibility to only acquire content that is
actually used.

With regard to retailers, Katrin Siems has a positive assessment of
the opportunity for cooperation: "It is important for De Gruyter to
involve retailers in this model."

For more information please visit: http://www.degruyter.com/page/428

Contact

Ulrike Lippe
Public Relations Manager
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