Electronic Resources @ Binghamton University Libraries: Electronic Resources Management

The term "electronic resources" refers to materials that require a computer or e-device to access the content. Access can  be provided locally or remotely via the Internet. E-resources have become essential in the collection-building activities of libraries as they simultaneously grapple with users' demands for instantaneous access to more content and more physical spaces that once housed print items being repurposed into more collaborative study/ work spaces, and the abundance of opportunities for offering more content and tools to their stakeholders.

Libraries dramatically increased their numbers of licensed electronic resources beginning in the 1990s, sparking the need for a more robust recordkeeping system to help manage the details of acquiring and maintaining  e-resources. This has lead to the development of propietary and open source next generation library systems as well as the implementation of networked access and security protocols.

Electronic resource management (ERM) entails the practices and use of of software systems by libraries to keep track of important information about electronic information resources including electronic books, electronic journals, databases, data sets, streaming audiovisual, digital tools, etc. ERM systems help us coordinate the multiple phases of the e-resources life-cycle as they move through selection, procurement and licensing, implementation, maintenance and troubleshooting, evaluation, and preservation and sustainability.