2015 Charleston Library Conference

While VHS media is still heavily present in academic library collections, the format has rapidly become obsolete over the last decade. With the inadequate supply of VCR’s and the physical deterioration of the VHS tapes, access to this content is becoming increasingly limited for library users.
In this poster session, the methodology and steps used to complete a 7000+ title VHS upgrade pilot project, as well as the valuable lessons learned, will be presented. It will detail the necessary steps, key players, timeline, and financial responsibilities the University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus Library took to complete this project. In addition, the poster will look at the impact this type of project has on a library’s collection development, access, digital reformatting, copyright clearance, and distributor relationships. Examples will highlight how the decisions were made for withdrawal, repurchasing on DVD or out of region formats, reformatting through an outside company, or keeping the VHS. Discussion will include lessons learned and unexpected barriers and benefits, including the creation of new student study space. Overall, this poster will target how they each related to increasing access to collections for the different user groups of the library and how this type of project could be replicated in other libraries.