Article delivery using ReadCube Access: a report on use in five US libraries

This paper aims to update information on ReadCube Access and briefly reviews its history. The study also reports on the use of ReadCube Access by five US academic libraries.

A series of questions was distributed to selected academic libraries using ReadCube Access. Survey recipients were asked to describe the library and the institution served, how long ReadCube Access has been in use, how many journals from Nature Publishing Group (NPG) were licensed and how many journals were being provided using ReadCube Access. Participating libraries were also asked to provide information about the purchase options offered to end-users, were asked to report on ReadCube Access usage and were requested to compare that usage to interlibrary loan (ILL) requests for NPG journals. Finally, the libraries were asked to share any comments about ReadCube Access they wished, including end user feedback and comments from library staff.

ReadCube Access is shown to be cost-effective and more heavily used than interlibrary loan. End-users are enthused by the instantaneous delivery of articles, and most libraries are generally pleased with the sustainability of this unmediated service. Some end-users are confused and annoyed by the differences in using ReadCube Access compared with the familiar use of subscriptions. A failing of ReadCube Access is that it only offers content from one publisher.

This paper fulfils an identified need for an update on ReadCube Access and a study on the experiences of various libraries using it.