Cost-benefit analysis of electronic information: A case study

Library services and products have associated costs, including direct monetary costs and indirect costs such as time. The decision to acquire or provide a particular product or service should involve an examination of its costs and benefits to library customers. One technique for analyzing cost-effectiveness is to perform a cost-benefit analysis (CBA). CBA involves analyzing the benefits, or potential benefits, of offering a product or service and comparing them to the costs of offering that product or service. This article describes a study in which CBA was used to examine the cost-effectiveness of an electronic database. Librarians can use the results of CBA studies to justify budgets and acquisitions and to provide insight into the true costs of providing library services.