 |
 |
[Apologies for Cross-Posting] There have been a number of recent postings to library lists regarding how librarians have found COUNTER reports to be of great value, however they have found the mechanical process of manually downloading these reports every month from multiple vendors/publishers/service providers (sometimes hundreds each month) to be very time consuming. Collectively across the library world, many thousands of hours each month are being wasted essentially copying and pasting spreadsheets together and then formatting them. MPS Technologies together with IBM (our statistics technology partner) have recently been looking at this issue. We already provide COUNTER data processing services to a number of publishers. COUNTER has achieved a great deal in defining standards for usage reporting and for standardizing the processing of usage data. MPS is now looking at how we can automate some of the manual tasks required to make the resulting COUNTER reports more useful and to make life easier for librarians. I am interested to know whether there is demand for a service for libraries/consortia that would enable you to receive a single set of consolidated COUNTER reports each month. At this stage we are working out the details of how the service would work (data collection, merging, delivery etc) and would very much appreciate input from librarians that might find this of value. If you feel that this might be of interest to you, and would like to be part of a beta trial (with all data treated confidentially), please contact me directly at [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> . We would mainly work by email, and I would expect the total time commitment from you at this stage to be a couple of hours at the most. I should state that, although I am a member of the COUNTER Executive Committee, this is not an official statement from COUNTER. Thank you, David Sommer _______________________________________________ David Sommer MPS Technologies Email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> Web: www.mpstechnologies.com <http://www.mpstechnologies.com/> Tel: +44 (0)20 7843 4858 (Direct Line) Tel: +44 (0)20 7833 4000 (Switchboard) ******************************************************************************** DISCLAIMER: This e-mail is confidential and should not be used by anyone who is not the original intended recipient. If you have received this e-mail in error please inform the sender and delete it from your mailbox or any other storage mechanism. Neither Macmillan Publishers Limited nor any of its agents accept liability for any statements made which are clearly the sender's own and not expressly made on behalf of Macmillan Publishers Limited or one of its agents. Please note that neither Macmillan Publishers Limited nor any of its agents accept any responsibility for viruses that may be contained in this e-mail or its attachments and it is your responsibility to scan the e-mail and attachments (if any). No contracts may be concluded on behalf of Macmillan Publishers Limited or its agents by means of e-mail communication. Macmillan Publishers Limited Registered in England and Wales with registered number 785998 Registered Office Brunel Road, Houndmills, Basingstoke RG21 6XS ********************************************************************************