Preliminary Survey Results - Use of Ebooks in the Enterprise
Jinfo Blog

By Helen Josephine

Abstract

FreePint's research into the use of ebooks in the corporate setting is ongoing. Here we present the preliminary results covering areas such as change in ebook usage and factors for success.

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The current research project examining the deployment and use of ebooks in enterprise settings is ongoing.

Survey responses so far have been from a wide variety of business sectors including legal, professional services, banking & finance, manufacturing, biotech/pharmaceutical and engineering, as well as government settings. Respondents have commented on the types of devices used to consume ebooks and the significant increase in ebook usage in the corporate setting.

Survey Results

Respondents to the survey were asked to comment on the change in ebook usage. Preliminary results illustrate that information centre managers indicate ebook usage has increased over the past two years and expect it to continue to increase over the coming two years. 

Figure 1: How has ebook usage changed in the past two years, and how do you expect it to change in the coming two years?

Some of the comments suggest the reason for the increase in usage is two-fold:

• The expansion of content directly targeted to researchers and engineers
• And the availability of ebooks formatted for a variety of devices including desktop and mobile.

Figure 2: How users access ebooks

Factors for Success 

Information centre managers are also asked to rate the criteria they use to evaluate the addition of ebooks to the information tools provided.  The most consistently mentioned factors include:

• Content
• Price
• Availability. 

Being able to purchase just those titles of direct use to the end-user in support of the business is also an important aspect.  

Determining the success of ebooks in the enterprise setting is more than just a count of the number of uses or downloads. Other factors such as availability of appropriate content and ease of discoverability are also critical to success.

There's Still Time to Participate in the Survey

Final survey results and the research report will be published in April 2015.  The survey will remain open for your participation and comments through 27 February 2015.

At the end of the survey, you have the option of including your contact information for a copy of the final report and survey results. As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome.

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