Update on Possible Disruption of Faxon Journals
As many you are aware, in late December the University Libraries learned that Faxon/RoweCom, one of the subscription agents it uses, was experiencing extreme financial difficulties. As a result, the 2000 Libraries’ subscriptions managed by Faxo/RoweCom fell under the risk of disruption starting with the January 2003 issues. 400 of the affected subscriptions are Hardin Library journal titles and comprise 16% of Hardin’s total serials subscriptions. These are listed on our web site at: http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/faxon.html
Last week we were informed that Faxon/RoweCom filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy and began negotiations with another subscription agent, EBSCO Industries Inc. Based on a February 7th news release, it now appears that EBSCO will acquire Faxon/RoweCom’s subscription base and make all efforts to minimize the disruption of these subscriptions. Final documentation on this is expected in two weeks.
This situation has affected many academic, government, and corporate libraries across the United States and Canada, including the libraries at NIH, several Illinois state university libraries, and 3M, as well as 19 other libraries in Iowa.
