Digital resources are quickly becoming the primary resource libraries provide and researchers use. Libraries have a burgeoning dependence on ephemeral items provided by other companies that rise and fall. While that sounds bleaker than the reality, there is a fear that one day the electronic items that libraries are investing in could disappear. Portico attempts to assuage this fear.
Portico is a digital archive preserving journal titles, e‐books and newspapers that are no longer available. Portico is created and supported by publishers and libraries to preserve digital collections. Once a collection is no longer commercially available, it is unlocked for Portico users in its entirety. The preservation happens immediately but access to the material must wait until the resource is no longer available commercially. Notices are given about potential collections becoming available. Portico is a part of ITHAKA and overseen by that organization through a partnership between publishers and librarians. While they decide what is added to the collection, they also encourage recommendations and notices from its constituents, libraries and publishers. A full list of currently available or upcoming titles can be found on Portico's webpage, separated by type and includes the publisher who provided the resource. It currently preserves more than 10,000 journal titles, almost 30,000 e‐book titles and several newspaper collections with more added constantly. My one complaint in this area is that the ratio between preserved materials and currently‐accessible resources is not made clear.
Access to Portico's resources requires two conditions: a resource is no longer commercially available and a subscription process. A library interested in joining Portico submits a Total Material's Expenditure to determine the library's annual support payment to the organization. This is based off of total number of monograph purchases, subscription costs for serials, and any other library materials from security devices to government documents. The inquiring library will need to sign two copies of the Portico license agreement. After this, resources are available as soon as they are no longer sold by publishers. It is made available to all Portico participants regardless of whether they had access to the resource when it was still commercially offered.
Like most databases, Portico is kind enough to offer a limited trial. A library can explore the archive and decide whether it suits their needs. Searching through the archive is fairly straightforward. A user can search subjects, titles and journals. The search interface is at once familiar and easy to use and would fall easily among any library's electronic collection.
Philosophically, Portico is a wonderful and increasingly necessary enterprise. Some libraries would lose valuable resources should a publisher go out of business and purchasing entire physical collections is an unwieldy if not impossible proposition. In practice, smaller universities may not be able to participate due to limited funds or limited focus. For some smaller libraries, resources still commercially available may be a better expenditure. Larger universities with a research focus or upper level degrees may have greater need for this archive, especially when they require access to older electronic materials that have been dropped due a lack of subscriptions or users. Ultimately it is up to each library to decide where they fall along this continuum.
Personally, my library would not necessarily benefit from this product as our resources are limited and our primary users are undergraduate students. As time goes on, we may find that some resources are no longer available and will have departments who will be interested in Portico. This would encourage us to join but until then, we have to put our resources where they will be most broadly useful and rely on interlibrary loan when necessary. I will keep this organization in mind as each year we must evaluate our electronic resources and needs of the professors and students.
