Press Release

The Occam’s Reader project is a partnership between Texas Tech, the University of Hawaii at Manoa and GWLA

New York, 31 January 2014

Springer and the Occam’s Reader Project – comprised of Texas Tech, University of Hawaii at Manoa and Greater Western Library Alliance (GWLA) – announced that they have entered into an agreement to run a pilot program with GWLA’s 33 members, focused on eBook interlibrary loans (ILL). This is the first major collaboration of its kind between academic libraries and a major publisher, and if successful, the year-long project could revolutionize the way libraries share books in a digital world.

At the center of the project lies “Occam’s Reader,” new software that was developed by the Design & Development Team at Texas Tech University Libraries and the Web Interface Development Team at the University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries, in collaboration with Greater Western Library Alliance (GWLA). Occam’s Reader streamlines and simplifies the way that libraries request, process and deliver borrowed eBooks. ILL has always been possible under the terms of Springer eBook licenses, but previously the process for doing so had been cumbersome and difficult. By integrating with the existing ILLiad framework, Occam’s Reader should make eBook ILL part of libraries’ everyday work flow.

Occam’s Reader’s many features make this a win-win situation for both Springer and GWLA-member libraries participating in the project. These benefits include secure online access to borrowed books, compliance with copyright laws and licensing provisions, reporting of usage statistics and the ability to take advantage of existing Springer features, such as location- and device-agnostic access. Both eBook chapters and full eBooks from Springer are eligible for the pilot.

“At Springer we are constantly trying to find new ways to add value to the content, products and services that we offer,” said Syed Hasan, President of Global Academic and Government Sales and Marketing. “It is part of our DNA to collaborate on promising initiatives like this pilot in order to help find solutions to our customers’ challenges, and we are excited for the opportunity to take part.”

Ryan Litsey, Texas Tech Document Delivery Librarian and Director of the Occam’s Reader Project added, “We could not be more proud of the headway that we are making with our new Occam’s Reader technology. Interlibrary loans of eBooks have long been a challenge posed to academic libraries, and we believe this new software could be the answer.”

Joni Blake, Executive Director of GWLA added, “We chose Springer because of their consistent and long-term commitment to libraries, and because of their leadership position in both eBooks and technology in scholarly communications. We could not have asked for a better partner.”

Naomi Chow, Interlibrary Loan Librarian at University of Hawaii at Manoa said, “We are excited to be a development partner in this project that has the potential to change the way research libraries work with publishers. Our goal is to make Occam’s Reader the gold standard for electronic loans.”

Greater Western Library Alliance (www.gwla.org) is a dynamic, effective, project-oriented consortium, nationally recognized as a leader in the transformation of scholarly communication, and a facilitator in the application of new information technologies.

Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) is a leading global scientific, technical and medical 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 healthcare and road safety education. Springer published roughly 2,200 English-language journals and more than 8,000 new books in 2012, and the group is home to the world’s largest STM eBook collection, as well as the most comprehensive portfolio of open access journals. In 2012, Springer Science+Business Media S.A. generated sales of approximately EUR 981 million. The group employs more than 7,000 individuals across the globe.