Post on 27-Mar-2015
transcript
The Incentives to PreserveDigital Materials:
Roles, Scenarios, and Economic Decision-making
Brian LavoieResearch Scientist
OCLC Research
OCLC Digital & Preservation Cooperative Participant Meeting, May 7, 2003
RoadmapRoadmap
• Background: Economics of Digital Preservation
• Incentives to Preserve Digital Materials
• Framework for Analyzing Incentives
• Implications
• Summary
Digital Preservation Research:
• Architectures• Metadata• Preservation strategies• Economics
Digital Preservation Research:
• Architectures• Metadata• Preservation strategies• Economics
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Economics of Digital PreservationEconomics of Digital Preservation
Digital collections growing …Digital collections growing …
… but long-term retention uncertain… but long-term retention uncertain
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Fundamental Economic QuestionsFundamental Economic Questions
• “IF we preserve, how much will it cost?”
• But: “WILL we preserve?”
Or …What are the incentives to preserve?
• Important because digital preservation …… likely to be routine, ongoing component of digital asset lifecycle management
… extends beyond collecting institutions to stakeholders not traditionally associated with preservation
Analysis of IncentivesAnalysis of Incentives• Incentives in practice:
– Cost/benefit analysis for a proposed activity
– Quantify incentives (costs and benefits)
– But: quantifying digital preservation costs and benefits problematic
• Useful to have some form of predictive model to address question “Will we preserve?”
• Strategy: develop simple framework that …– Identifies key decision-making roles in digital preservation
– Characterizes set of “core scenarios” representing possible ways decision-making roles can be organized in a digital preservation activity
– Apply economic theory to core scenarios to yield qualitative descriptions of the incentives to preserve in each scenario
Incentives to PreserveIncentives to Preserve
(1) Recognition of a value or benefit in preserving a set of digital materials“need to preserve” = demand for digital preservation services(1) Recognition of a value or benefit in preserving a set of digital materials“need to preserve” = demand for digital preservation services
(2) Willingness to implement and carry out processes necessaryto preserve digital materials“willingness to preserve” = supply of digital preservation services
(2) Willingness to implement and carry out processes necessaryto preserve digital materials“willingness to preserve” = supply of digital preservation services
Digital Preservation:Decision-Making RolesDigital Preservation:Decision-Making Roles
Rights HolderRights Holder
BeneficiaryBeneficiaryArchiveArchive
- Holds intellectual property rights- Right to initiate preservation- Can cede or grant right to another entity
- Holds intellectual property rights- Right to initiate preservation- Can cede or grant right to another entity
- Benefits from preservation- Directly: as end user- Indirectly: on behalf of end-users
- Benefits from preservation- Directly: as end user- Indirectly: on behalf of end-users
- Implements and manages preservation process- Implements and manages preservation process
Roles and IncentivesRoles and Incentives
• Decision-makers are roles, not distinct entities (Entity: library, publisher, person, etc.)
• Multiple entities can share the same role
• Beneficiary: embodies need to preserve
• Archive: embodies willingness to preserve
• Rights Holder: empowers incentives
Core Scenarios of Digital PreservationCore Scenarios of Digital Preservation
Beneficiary Centripetal Model
Centrifugal Model
Consolidated Model
Supply-Side Model
Demand-Side Model
ArchiveRightsHolder
RightsHolder
RightsHolder
RightsHolder
RightsHolder
Archive
Archive
Archive
Archive
Beneficiary
Beneficiary
Beneficiary
Beneficiary
Economic Theory and IncentivesEconomic Theory and Incentives
• Core scenarios highlight …– Relationships among key decision-making roles
associated with digital preservation
– Relationships between need to preserve, willingness to preserve, and right to preserve
– How do these relationships impact incentives?
• Economics: rich literature dealing with incentives in settings similar to “core scenarios”– Prospects for sufficient incentives to emerge; factors
that may diminish incentives
– Policies to enhance incentives where needed
Implications (1)Implications (1)
Rights Holder distinct from Beneficiary …
– Right to preserve separate from need to preserve
– Owner of digital materials may not benefit directly from long-term preservation
– Example: licensed/subscribed digital materials
– Diminished incentives: positive externality
– Centrifugal, Supply-Side, Consolidated Models
Implications (2)Implications (2)
Rights Holder/Beneficiary same entity …– Right to preserve combined with need to
preserve
– AND multiple entities fill this dual role in regard to a particular set of digital materials
– Example: shrink-wrapped digital content; “environment” software (operating systems, rendering applications)
– Diminished incentives: public goods, “free-riding”
– Centripetal, Demand-Side Models
Implications (3)Implications (3)
Archive distinct from Beneficiary …– Willingness to preserve separate from Need to preserve
– AND multiple Beneficiaries with different perceptions of “successful” digital preservation
– Example: preservation for limited period vs. perpetuity; preserve intellectual content only vs. original “look and feel”
– Multiple levels (intensities) of digital preservation service
– Diminished incentives: market fragmentation; reduced scope for economies of scale
– Centrifugal, Supply-Side, Demand-Side Models
Back to Core Scenarios …Back to Core Scenarios …
Positive externalityPositive externality
Public good; free-ridingPublic good; free-riding
Market FragmentationMarket Fragmentation
Centripetal
Centripetal
Centrifugal
Centrifugal
Supply-Side
Supply-Side
Demand-Side
Demand-Side
Consolidated
Consolidated
SummarySummary
• Incentives to preserve fundamental to developing economically sustainable digital preservation activities– For any set of digital materials, need to examine underlying
motivations to undertake digital preservation
• To analyze incentives, characterize organization of decision-making roles for a particular digital preservation activity:– Identify relationships between incentives to preserve (need to
preserve, willingness to preserve) and right to preserve
• Use these relationships to identify potential misalignment of preservation incentives and objectives. This will inform:– Organization of digital preservation activities a priori
– Design of policies to enhance incentives ex post
For More Information …For More Information …
Paper:http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/digipres/
incentives-dp.pdf
Contact:lavoie@oclc.org