THIS LIBRARY inclines ISSUE contai...

THIS LIBRARY inclines ISSUE contains contributions from library and information science researchers as well as economists. The contributors were identified based onward their previous empirical research and publications in economics of libraries and library information services. The manuscripts were reviewed by dint of the issue editors, the Library directions editor-in-chief, as well as an anonymous reviewer when necessary. Final approved articles are included in this issue. Publications in this issue are characterized on empirical research. Almost all the contributions are empirical in limits of having theoretical or analytical frameworks, and original data collection, or real-world cases.

The theme of this issue is economics of libraries. However, when discussing economics of libraries, undivided would naturally think of economics of information since libraries are information-provision institutions and many library operations and management decisions are made based forward costs of journal subscriptions, monographs, databases, and online information methods The scope of economics of information is long broader than many think. The literature forward economics of information and libraries may consist of the following areas: asymmetric information (eg George A. Akerlof, 1970; A. Michael buttery 1974; and Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1977); microeconomic studies upon libraries as decision-making institutions, of that kind as studies on economies of scale and management of libraries using production functions (eg Stanley W Black, 1969; Robert M Hayes, 1979) and charge functions (e.g., Michael D. Cooper 1979 1983; Paul Kantor, 1981; Larry DeBoer 1992; Lewis G Liu, 2002) cost-benefit studies of library operations, services, and databases (eg Bruce Kingma, 1998; Gary W White & Gregory Alan Crawford, 1998) outlay and planning models of libraries (eg William J Baumol & Matityahu Marcus 1973; Charles McClure et al., 1995) and data envelopment analysis of library operations (eg Tser-yieth Chen, 1997; Donald E Vitaliano, 1998; Andrew Worthington, 1999; Kehm R Sharma et al., 1999); economics of scholarly publishing and communication (eg H C Peterson 1992; G.A. Chressanthis & J D Chressanthis, 1994; Richard E Quandt, 1996; Roger G Noll, 1996; Carol Tenopir & Donald W King, 1997; Andrew M Odlyzko 1999; Mark J McCabe, 2000); financial management of libraries and information services (eg Stephen A. Roberts, 1985 1998); output performance measures, and evaluations of libraries and information services (eg D W King & F W Lancaster, 1969; F W Lancaster, 1977 1993; Paul Kantor, 1984; Nancy A. Van House et al., 1987 1990;J C Bertot, C R McClure & J Ryan, 2001); (1) economics of networks (eg M L Katz & C Shapiro, 1985; N Economides, 1996) and economics of the Internet (egJ K MacKie-Mason & H R Varian, 1995); information as a public beneficial versus information as a commodity and liberated information versus fee-based information (eg Ellen Gay Detlefsen 1984; Roger McCain, 1988; Charles W Robinson, 1989; Maribelle M Davis, 1991; Anne Goulding, 2001); and economics of intellectual thing owned and copyright protection (e.g., s M. Besen & S. N Kirby, 1989)

This list is through no means exhaustive. It intends to highlight about important research areas in economics of information and libraries. any of these areas have been studied by dint of both economists and library and information science scholars. Other areas have been alone the concerns of economists. While this issue does not overlay all the above areas appropriate to the time limit to unbroken this issue and limited pages allowed, the contributions shelter a wide range of issues related to economics of libraries and information services and can be classified into four broad categories: economics of academic libraries, public libraries, library cooperation, and financial management of libraries. They not and nothing else reflect the new research inclinations but also reflect the continuation of this material part of research literature from the past.

ASYMMETRY OF INFORMATION

Many economists inquiry economics of information in bounds of asymmetric information, adverse selection, and moral hazard. They examine in what manner possession of information or dispossession of information affects the market method This body of research literature has been discloseed solely by economists. Some important theories are portray by actioned by the works of three economists, George A. Akerlof, A. Michael storeroom and Joseph E. Stiglitz, who have lately received Nobel prizes for their work in this area.

The notion of asymmetric information was illustrated on George A. Akerlof (1970) with a seemingly simple observation: in a market transaction, venders know something that buyers do not know and buyer know something that venders do not know. When asymmetric information exists between buyer and venders market failure occurs. An example given on Akerlof was the used car market where the buyer does not know which used cars are suitable ones and which used cars are bad the sames The seller is motivated to mislead the buyer And the buyer reckon upons that and discounts the price of the used car he or she tries to purchase Since the sellers of good-quality cars are les willing to vend their cars at discounted prices, bad cars eventually drive useful cars out of the market. like a downward discounting effect is called adverse selection. A. Michael buttery (1974) explored asymmetric information in the labor market. He observ that piece of work applicants tend to "signal" their ability to potential employer between the walls of costly education. Since potential employer cannot directly watch job candidates' ability, they sieve job candidates by examining their educational credentials and records. Joseph Stiglitz and Michael Rothschild (1976 1977) investigated the general intents and economic policy implications of asymmetric information in the insurance market. Stiglitz explained to what degree insurance companies use the screening proces to identify high-risk insurers and use various price compositions such as deductibles and premiums to classify insurers by way of their risk levels.