Systems for managing electronic resources (SECOND PART). Library services platforms (LSP)

Abstract

The paper completes the study on systems for managing electronic resources and examines the library services platforms (LSP), next-generation systems that allow to manage within a single platform the entire life cycle of all resources (print, electronic or digital), regardless of granularity and of acquisition mode. In this way the library services platform integrates various functions first guaranteed by the use of separate instruments, in particular ILS, ERMS and link resolver, resulting in numerous and significant advantages in terms of efficiency. The paper describes functionalities and technical features of these new products and offers an overview of the main library services platforms, proprietary and open source, available on the market. The paper concludes with the results’ presentation of a survey about the use of library services platforms at italian academic libraries.
(NB: this is the second part of a more extensive study. The first part has been published in AIB studi 1/2016)