The effects of portfolio purchasing on a specialized subject collection.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the impact of portfolio purchasing on a small, highly specialized medical collection at The Ohio State University.


METHODS
In this citation analysis, cited references for articles published by faculty in the College of Veterinary Medicine between 2000 and 2004 were collected and analyzed to determine whether The Ohio State University Libraries provided print or electronic access to the publications cited or the publishers of the cited journals, and whether the university purchased a subscription to each journal or received the subscription through a consortium-sponsored portfolio purchasing agreement.


RESULTS
Of the 419 journals veterinary faculty cited more than 10 times, only 13 (3.1%) were in Zone 1, and 63 (15.0%) were in Zone 2 of the Bradford distribution, a citation analysis model which demonstrates that a small number of journals account for the bulk of literature utilized in any established field. Of these, only 23 (5.5%) were procured through an OhioLINK or other consortium portfolio purchasing agreement.


CONCLUSIONS
The costs of acquiring a publisher's portfolio, even through a consortium, should be balanced with the costs of purchasing content required to provide a balanced collection for all user populations.
Murphy
Sarah Anne
SA
Veterinary Medicine Library, Ohio State University, 225 Veterinary Medicine Academic Building, 1900 Coffey Rd., Columbus, OH 43210, USA. murphy.465@osu.edu
D004520:Education, Veterinary / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020407:Internet / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D046609:Libraries, Digital / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007993:Libraries, Medical / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009820:Ohio; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012582:Schools, Veterinary / Q000191:economics* / Q000458:organization & administration; D013358:Subject Headings; D014730:Veterinary Medicine