The COUNTER Code of Practice Release 1

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The COUNTER Code of Practice-Release 1

• Released January 14, 2003
• www.projectcounter.org

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Background

• Libraries need online usage statistics
• To assess the value of different online
  products/services
• To make better-informed purchasing decisions
• To plan infrastructure
• Publishers need online usage statistics
• To experiment with new pricing models
• To assess the relative importance of the
  different channels by which information reaches
  the market
• To provide editorial support
• To plan infrastructure
• Academic and professional publishing is global
  and needs a global standard for its online usage
  statistics

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Online usage statistics need to be

• Credible
• Compatible
• Consistent

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COUNTER objective

• To develop a single, international, extendible
  Code of Practice that allows the usage of online
  information to be measured in a credible,
  consistent and compatible way using
  vendor-generated data.

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COUNTER strategy

• Respond to the requirements of the international
  librarian, publisher and intermediary communities
• An open, inclusive and interactive process
• Representation of all three communities on
  COUNTER
• Limit scope of Release 1 to journals and
  databases
• Systematically extend scope of the Code of
  Practice
• Horizontally, to cover other content types, such
  as e-books
• Vertically, to provide, e.g., statistics for
  individual articles
• A cost effective-process for all parties involved
• Only one valid version of the Code of Practice at
  any time

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The COUNTER Code of Practice-Release 1main
features

• Definitions of terms used
• Specifications for Usage Reports
• Data processing guidelines
• Auditing
• Compliance
• Maintenance and development of the Code of
  Practice
• Governance of COUNTER

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Definitions of terms used

• Data elements to be collected
• Page views
• Bibliographic data
• Page type
• Source of page
• Authentication of user
• Access rights
• Session data
• Market elements

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Specifications for Usage Reports

• Content
• Level 1
• Journal Report 1 Number of Successful Full-Text
  Article Requests by Month and Journal
• Journal Report 2 Turnaways by Month and Journal
• Database Report 1 Total Searches Sessions by
  Month Database
• Database Report 2 Turnaways by Month Database
• Database Report 3 Total Searches Sessions by
  Month Service
• Level 2
• Journal Report 3 Number of Successful item
  Requests and Turnaways by Month, Journal Page
  Type
• Journal Report 4 Total Searches Run by Month
  Service
• Format
• Delivery

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Data processing guidelines

• Only intended usage is covered
• Impractical to describe all possible filters for
  all possible ways of generating intended usage
  records
• COP specifies the criteria to be met by the data
  used in building the Usage Reports
• Only successful requests will be counted
• Items generated by the server together with the
  requested pages should be ignored (e.g images
  within a page)
• Repeated clicks within 10 seconds on an http-link
  should be counted as only one request (30 seconds
  for PDF)

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Auditing

• Auditing will be required from 2004
• Auditing processes are under development
• A list of COUNTER-approved auditors will be made
  available

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Compliance

• More than one compliance level
• Level 1 basic set of journal and database
  reports
• Level 2 more detailed reports
• Licence Agreements
• Standard clause offered, covering COUNTER
  compliance
• Declaration of COUNTER compliance
• For 2003
• Vendors sign declaration and demonstrate to
  COUNTER that they can provide at least Level 1
  Usage Reports
• Register of COUNTER-compliant vendors
• To be maintained on the COUNTER website

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Maintenance and development of the Code of
Practice

• Full text of the Code of Practice is freely
  available on the COUNTER website
• Code of Practice will be systematically extended
• Feedback on Release 1 is actively sought
• Via test sites involving publishers and libraries
• Via feedback to COUNTER via the website,
  International Advisory Board, presentations at
  meetings, etc.

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Governance of COUNTER

• Executive Committee
• Chaired by Richard Gedye (OUP)
• International Advisory Board
• 30 members
• Technical Advisory Group
• Marketing Committee
• Project Director
• Peter Shepherd

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2003 and beyond

• Objectives for 2003
• Promote and gain acceptance for the Code of
  Practice
• Obtain feedback on Release 1
• Complete list of approved auditors
• Define and set up a permanent administrative
  structure
• Full implementation by vendors for 2004
  subscription year
• Beyond 2003
• Extend and deepen Code of Practice
• Cover e-books, etc
• Journal reporting at article level

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COUNTER Founding Sponsors

• AAP/PSP
• ALPSP
• ARL
• ASA
• Blackwell Publishing
• EBSCO
• Elsevier Science
• Ingenta
• IOPP

• Lippincott, Williams Wilkins
• Nature Publishing Group
• Oxford University Press
• The Publishers Association
• ProQuest
• Taylor Francis Group
• STM
• UKSG

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For more information.

• www.projectCounter.org