The document discusses trends in library collections and the increasing prominence of Asian cities and universities. It notes that library collections are becoming more similar globally due to shared purchasing and digitization, while libraries need to demonstrate distinctive value. Asian cities are gaining global influence through investments in higher education and infrastructure. The role of libraries is critical for supporting research, and increased cooperation can help redirect resources. There are opportunities to improve the visibility of Asian library collections and participation in reshaping the library supply chain.
Kuala Lumpur talk examines trends in Asian library collections
1. Kuala Lumpur | 3 September 2012
OCLC Asia Pacific Regional Council
The Changing Collections
Context: trends in library
resource management and some
reflections on Asian Ascendance
Constance Malpas
Program Officer
OCLC Research
Follow me @ConstanceM
The world’s libraries. Connected.
2. Trading Places
San Francisco = Thailand?
Source: “If US Cities Were Countries, How Would They Rank?”
The world’s libraries. Connected. www.theatlantic.com (July, 2011)
3. Thesis: Place matters
In a world where the information environment is
increasingly flat
Academic collections are increasingly alike
Discovery is increasingly dis-intermediated
Global supply chains provide frictionless fulfillment
libraries are increasingly challenged to demonstrate
distinctive value, need to leverage shared capacity to
Reduce investment in redundant operations
Redirect resources toward renovated library service portfolio
Library place less about collections, more about creative capital
The world’s libraries. Connected.
4. Speaking of place…
Asian ascendance
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: A.T. Kearney. 2012 Global Cities Index
5. Asian cities
poised to gain
global influence
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: AT Kearney. 2012 Global Cities Index
6. Factors in „Asian ascendance‟
• Regional investment in higher education, ICT
infrastructure, logistics and transportation
• Renewed attention to global reputation of
research institutions, improved ability to attract
human capital
• Vibrant, culturally diverse urban agglomerations
that foster innovation and entrepreneurship
The world’s libraries. Connected.
7. Role of Libraries
• Libraries represent critical infrastructure in the
knowledge economy
• Research, innovation and cultural influence rely
on efficient information flows
• Increased adoption of shared library services
enables a redirection of institutional
resources toward distinctive, value generating
activities
The world’s libraries. Connected.
8. Implications
• Increased attention to research reputation –
international rankings, ability to recruit/retain
global talent – places new stresses on library
organization
• Emphasis shifts from acquiring, managing
comprehensive local collections to maximizing
visibility of locally distinctive assets
• Renewed focus on „customer‟ engagement,
alignment with academic mission
The world’s libraries. Connected.
9. Operationally, this means:
• Local management of retrospective print
collections is no longer a „value driver‟ for
most institutions
• Increased reliance on just-in-time fulfillment,
demand-driven acquisitions, „managing up‟ e-
resources
• New attention to revealing library capacity –
expertise, distinctive resources, service profile –
in global network
The world’s libraries. Connected.
10. 20th Century 21st Century
Library Organization
defined by
Local Collections Shared Collections
Local Stewardship Cooperative Governance
Local Discovery Network Disclosure
supported by
Infrastructure
Warehouse of books Collaboration spaces
Preservation of what is „mine‟ Joint stewardship of what is „ours‟
Local ILS „Cloud-based‟ management svcs
assessed with
Metrics
Collection size Support for research processes
Gate count Management of institutional IP
Satisfaction Impact
The world’s libraries. Connected.
11. 21st Century Collections
http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/21stctfreport_11may12.pdf
The world’s libraries. Connected.
12. Areas where OCLC has
made significant
investments in primary
research and service
development
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: W. Lougee “Content & Collections: Rubrics and Rubiks”
13. Key Findings
ARL institutions are the
primary stewards of non-
North American books in
WorldCat; 69% held by at
least one ARL
On average, non North-
American imprints are held
by fewer than 5 ARL
libraries
East Asian imprints among
the least widely held global
resources in US academic
research libraries, with
fewer than 3 holding libraries
per title on average
The world’s libraries. Connected.
14. Scope of ARL East Asian collections is growing
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: D. Jakubs (2010)
15. WorldCat library holdings for Asian imprints
East Asia
South Asia 2004: 61% ARL
Southeast Asia 2004: 77% ARL 2010: 42% ARL
2004: 60% ARL 2010: 57% ARL
2010: 35% ARL
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: D. Jakubs (2010)
16. Implications
• Greater diversity of holding institutions increases
uncertainty about stewardship and supply
• Ongoing pressures on ARL institutions further
erode (US) confidence in long-term
preservation of global resources, including
Asian imprints
• Heightened interest to digital supply chain and
trusted repositories
The world’s libraries. Connected.
17. Asian regional presence in mass-digitized corpus
Some rough figures, based on analysis of
WorldCat and HathiTrust in August 2012:
• Of the ~20M Asian imprints in WorldCat, only
about 756K (4%) are present in the HathiTrust
Digital Library
• Asian imprints account for less than 20% of the
~5.4M titles digitized by HathiTrust partners
The world’s libraries. Connected.
18. Number of Asian imprints, by region, represented in HathiTrust (July 2012)
756K
Titles
Asian presence in mass-digitized corpus is growing
247K
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas, OCLC Research 2012.
19. Asian regional presence in HathiTrust as percent of all titles
2.1M 3.7M 4.9M 5.4M
While Asian publications increasingly well represented in WorldCat
the region‟s „digital book presence‟ (in WorldCat) has hit a plateau
13% 16% 17% 16%
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas, OCLC Research 2012.
20. Percent of Asian regional imprints in WorldCat duplicated in HathiTrust
Median = 9% Median = 4% Median = 4%
… a small fraction of Asian imprints in WorldCat have been digitized
South Asia Southeast Asia East Asia
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas, OCLC Research 2012.
21. Implications
• Network presence of Asian imprints is “spiky”
– publication records of some countries are more
visible than others; digitization accentuates this
trend
• Potential impact on global reach of research,
scholarship produced in Asia
• Asian libraries can help correct this imbalance by
registering print and digital/digitized holdings
in WorldCat
The world’s libraries. Connected.
22. Key Findings
Significant and growing
overlap between academic
print collections and mass-
digitized corpus
As much as 75% of the
mass-digitized resource
already managed in shared
print repositories
Opportunity for large-scale
transformation in academic
2011 print management; space
recovery and cost-avoidance
The world’s libraries. Connected.
23. HathiTrust Digital Library Growth Trajectory
As of July 2012, HathiTrust is equal in size (volumes)
and scope (titles) to top US ARL libraries
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas, OCLC Research 2012.
25. Represents at least 16,693
linear feet or >5 kilometers
of shelf space
Potential cost avoidance?:
USD 900K/yr
NTU library collection: ~900K titles in WorldCat TWD 27M/yr
2.4M volumes
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas. OCLC Research, 2012.
26. Among Asian research libraries, ~25% holdings overlap with HathiTrust
Median Overlap = 24%
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas. OCLC Research, 2012.
27. Among North American peer libraries, 35% overlap with HathiTrust
Median Overlap = 35%
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: C. Malpas. OCLC Research, 2012.
28. Implications
For US academic and research libraries:
• an opportunity to rethink local collection
management strategies, risk profile has
changed
For Asian academic and research libraries:
• an opportunity to increase visibility of regional
library assets in global network, participate in
reconfiguration of library supply chain
The world’s libraries. Connected.
29. Implications (cont.)
For all libraries, an opportunity to:
• Reduce local investment in commodity collections
• Increase alignment with institutional mission by
rebalancing service portfolio
• Enhance library value proposition by renewing focus
on stewardship of distinctive institutional assets,
special collections, „global resources‟, teaching &
learning materials
The world’s libraries. Connected.
30. Key Findings
90% of the print book collection in
North America is concentrated in 12
mega-regions
Access benefits and preservation
risk are highly concentrated
Regional collections are highly diffuse
Risk assessment requires
system-wide view
>50% of regional print books managed by
academic libraries
Changes in global higher
education affect entire library
system
Despite high-levels of bi-lateral
2012 duplication, each mega region has
something unique to offer
improving „flows‟ will benefit all
The world’s libraries. Connected.
players
31. Monographic Publications and Library Holdings in North American Mega-regions
45M discrete publications
889M library holdings (avg. 20/title); 72% of all holdings in WorldCat
“Spiky” distribution
The world’s libraries. Connected.
32. Asian mega-regions, 2010
Asia Pacific in the vanguard of shift …
APEC accounts for 9% of world population
>50% of global economic output
~75% of global innovation
Richard Florida, 2011
“… mega regions will
be the drivers of Asian
economies in 2050.”
Asia Development Bank, 2011
Sources: R. Florida. Cities & the Creative Class in Asia. AtlanticCities.com
The world’s libraries. Connected.
Asia 2050: Realizing the Asian Century
33. “Where the World‟s Brains Are” (2010)
Research universities increasingly function as a
key hub institution of the knowledge economy.
Richard Florida
The world’s libraries. Connected. Source: R. Florida. Where the World‟s Brains Are. www.creativeclass.com
34. “Where the World‟s Brains Are” 2010 vs. 2012
2010/11: Asian universities account
for 7% of top 400 world universities
2011/2012: … 16% of top 400
Sources: www.creativeclass.com
The world’s libraries. Connected. THES Top Asian Universities 2012
35. Implications
• A (mega) regional strategy for library print
management could reduce redundant investment
in „low-value‟ operations
• Enabling academic libraries to refocus attention,
resources on distinctive service contributions
• Leveraging existing networks of cooperation and
exchange
• Raising the global profile of Asian library capacity
The world’s libraries. Connected.
36. The Power of Place
The world’s libraries. Connected.
37. Asia‟s Libraries 2050
• Increased reliance on shared service infrastructure:
discovery, delivery, resource management
• Shift to mega-regional scale in print management
• Improved network visibility of Asian library capacity,
collections and services
• Regional library infrastructure recognized -- and
funded -- as vital component of global knowledge
economy
The world’s libraries. Connected.
38. Libraries are operating in a world where
information is increasingly flat
Knowledge is spiky
Innovation
Culture
the future
The world’s libraries. Connected.
39. Thank you for your attention.
Questions?
Comments?
Constance Malpas
malpasc@oclc.org
The world’s libraries. Connected.
40. Sources
• Association of Research Libraries. 21st-Century Collections: Calibration of Investment and
Collaborative Action. http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/21stctfreport_11may12.pdf
• ATKearney (2012). 2012 Global Cities Index and Emerging Cities Outlook
http://www.atkearney.com/images/global/pdf/2012_Global_Cities_Index_and_Emerging_Cities_Outlook_
1.pdf
• Florida, R. L., Gulden, T., Mellander, C., & Joseph L. Rotman School of Management. (2007). The rise of
the mega-region. Toronto, Ont.: Martin Prosperity Institute.
http://www.rotman.utoronto.ca/userfiles/prosperity/File/Rise.of.%20the.Mega-Regions.w.cover.pdf
• Jackson, M. E., & Association of Research Libraries , OCLC Research et al. (2006). Changing global
book collection patterns in ARL libraries. Washington, D.C: Association of Research Libraries.
http://www.arl.org/resources/pubs/grn_global_book.shtml
• Jakubs, D. (2010) Are We There Yet? Trends in Global Collections and Services. ARL Membership
Meeting, April 2010 http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/mm10sp-jakubs.pdf
• Kohli, H. S., Sharma, A., & Sood, A. (2011). ASIA 2050: Realizing the Asian Century: Overview.
http://www.emergingmarketsforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Overview-0503E.pdf
• Lougee, W. (2012). Content & Collections: Rubrics and Rubiks. ARL Membership Meeting, April 2012
www.arl.org/bm~doc/mm12spring-lougee.pdf
• Lavoie, B. F., Malpas, C., Shipengrover, J. D., & OCLC Research. (2012). Print management at "Mega-
scale": A regional perspective on print book collections in North America. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC
Research. http://www.oclc.org/resources/research/publications/library/2012/2012-05.pdf
• Malpas, C., & OCLC Research (2011). Cloud-sourcing research collections: Managing print in the
mass-digitized library environment. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC Research.
http://www.oclc.org/resources/research/publications/library/2011/2011-01.pdf
The world’s libraries. Connected.
Hinweis der Redaktion
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/07/if-us-cities-were-countries-how-would-they-rank/241977/#slide8San Francisco metro area represents economy similar in size to Thailand.This is many respects a false equivalence – San Francisco and Thailand may be equally vibrant from an economic point of view, but they obviously differ in many important respects.
2010 snapshot dataThis is part of the global ‘re-set’ of WorldCat – increased contribution of records from non-NA members
What’s behind this? Have HathiTrust partners “run out” of Asian imprints to digitize?
This is partly a reflection of the fact that holdings are in non-HathiTrust librariesStronger representation of South Asian titles also a reflection ARL strength in this area
NTU ranks in top 200 universities worldwide and in top 20 within Asia. Collection of more than 2M volumes. We count
The University of Hong Kong, National Library of New Zealand and University of New South Wales participate in the OCLC Research Library Partnership. Earlier this year we provided all 160 Research Library Partners with individualized collection profiles documenting their overlap with the HathiTrust corpus.
As a basis of comparison, we identified six major research libraries in North America with WorldCat holdings similar in size to those of the APRC Executive Committee members. As with the previous chart, the institutions are presented in order of total WorldCat holdings – UC Davis has the greatest number, Queen’s University has the fewest.
Print books = ~60% of WorldCat as a wholeNA print book collection = 36% of print books in WorldCat, but 72% of all holdingsBOS-WASH avg ~14 holdings per publication PHOENIX avg ~2 holdings per pub’n
Japan: 4 mega-regionsKorea: 1Taiwan: 1China: 3Thailand: 1Singapore: 1India: 3“at the same moment that technology enables the geographic spread of economic activity, economic activity continues to cluster and concentrate around this mega-regional unit.”
http://www.creativeclass.com/_v3/creative_class/2010/10/19/where-the-worlds-brains-are/http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2011-2012/asia.html Map based on Academic Ranking of World Universities rankings (Shanghai Rating Consultancy) in 2010.In 2011 THE rankings, Asian libraries accounted for just 7% of top 400 universities in the world. In 2012, they accounted for 16%.http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/asia.html
http://www.flickr.com/photos/siutou_amy/503034582/ “Self-portrait – Amy!” Amy WongKuala Lumpur skyline: wikimedia