Springer and the Scottish Higher Education Digital Library Consortium (SHEDL) recently signed a ground-breaking agreement for access to electronic journal subscriptions and eBooks on Springer's platform SpringerLink. Every SHEDL member will now have access to an enormous database of content consisting of nearly 2,000 journals and over 40,000 eBooks. The license will run for a period of three years starting in 2012, and unlimited DRM free access will be given to all higher education institutions across Scotland.
Anne Donnelly, Library Sales Director UK and Ireland at Springer, said, "This agreement represents a collaborative milestone not just in Scotland but across the UK as a whole. SHEDL is a dynamic and forward-thinking organization that Springer has been lucky to work with for many years. By adding many thousands of scientific eBooks alongside the eJournals, they are opening up this key content to all researchers and students across Scotland."
Jill Evans, Service Development Manager, Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), said, "One of SCURL's strategic objectives is supporting SHEDL to extend its access to a range of content formats for our users in Scottish Higher Education Institutions. Opening access to Springer eBooks and eJournals is a significant step to support the learning, teaching and research agenda. The availability of Springer's content through SHEDL ensures equitable access for our users and contributes to creating the infrastructure for a digital library for Scotland. SHEDL acknowledges the significant contribution which our colleagues in JISC Collections have made to the successful negotiations to achieve this agreement."
SHEDL (http://scurl.ac.uk) aims, through collaboration and combined purchasing power, to achieve a shared digital library in Scotland with easier access to online content in order to support research, learning and teaching. Led by the Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries, SHEDL is the first super-consortial purchasing scheme of its kind in the UK. The SHEDL members are the Scottish Higher Education Institutions and the National Library of Scotland.
Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) is a leading global scientific publisher, providing researchers in academia, scientific institutions and corporate R&D departments with quality content via innovative information products and services. Springer is also a trusted local-language publisher in Europe – especially in Germany and the Netherlands – primarily for physicians and professionals working in the automotive, transport and healthcare sectors. Roughly 2,000 journals and more than 7,000 new books are published by Springer each year, and the group is home to the world's largest STM eBook collection, as well as the most comprehensive portfolio of open access journals. Springer employs nearly 6,200 individuals across the globe and in 2011 generated sales of approximately EUR 875 million.
Further Contact: Jill Evans, SCURL, tel: +44 131 623 3940, j.evans@nls.uk