I recently saw this statement in a video distributor's promotional literature that took me for surprise:
"on average more than ~45% of DVDs acquired by the libraries are checked out less than 4 times over the course of their lifetime" That seemed remarkably inaccurate to me. So decided to check our own data for comparison. To test I looked at the data for DVDs added to the ASU Libraries collections before July 1, 2009. So the N in the data means that the DVDs have been available at minimum 5 years. ASU Libraries has 2 major video collections. Use data breaks down as follows: Collection 1 3283 DVDs # borrowed 5 times or more: 2710 % borrowed 5 times or more: 82.5 % Collection 2 2997 DVDs # borrowed 5 times or more: 1904 % borrowed 5 times or more: 63.5 % Aggregated 6280 DVDs # circulated 5 times or more: 4614 % borrowed 5 times or more: 73.5 % Related data: Average number of loans per item: Collection 1: 27 Collection 2: 14 Aggregated: 21 And I toss in here the data for DVDs never borrowed… for comparison to the same data for monographs in college/university libraries that show a non-circ rate of 40-60% Number of DVDs / Percentage NEVER borrowed Collection 1: 170 / 5.2% Collection 2: 287 / 9.6% Aggregated: 457 / 7.3% The original statement was not cited so I don't know where the source of the data. It is possible that it reflects a closed collection in which only faculty are allowed to borrow videos, or the videos can be used only in the Library/library classroom…. OR it is possible that the collection from which the base data was collected is a collection that does not match the curriculum/interest/ or need of the faculty/students. As I indicated in the start of the message, the statement surprised me…. How might my data and/or the quoted figure compare to your experiences.
VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and distributors.
