Outsell Predicts Revolution in the Land of STM Giants

BURLINGAME, Calif.--Feb. 9, 2004--

Increasing turmoil and opportunity for both buyers and sellers in the $11 billion Scientific, Technical & Medical information sector

Outsell, Inc., the only research and advisory firm that focuses exclusively on the Information Content (IC) Industry, today released new details in the serials crisis currently pitting libraries and academic institutions in open revolt against the publishers that serve them in the $11 billion Scientific, Technical & Medical (STM) information sector. Outsell's new Briefing, Competitor Assessment: STM - Revolution In The Land Of The Giants, contains detailed and actionable data and predictions for both buyers and sellers in the STM market.

"The transformation of STM publishing goes way beyond the widely reported Open Access threat," said Outsell's Chief Analyst, Leigh Watson Healy. "Open Access is just one symptom of the overall disease, and there are other ways that the market is responding. Much like Napster's shakeup of the music industry, the world is changing -- but there are plenty of opportunities for smart sellers to prosper and smart buyers to get more value for their shrinking budgets. The entire industry is witnessing a revolution in the making."

The Briefing examines revolutionary changes in the STM market beyond the widely reported Open Access revolt. Specific predictions include: increased collaboration among libraries, funding agencies intervening to help forge new business models, innovation from the smaller publishers, and embedding STM content into decision-making workflow. Outsell's unparalleled lens on the STM sector reveals increasing diversity and fragmentation in a market that has evolved through consolidation to domination by a handful of big players, but also includes a large number of small publishers providing valuable content.

In writing the Briefing, Outsell analysts stepped back from the current highly charged industry atmosphere to take a detailed look at the company performance, strategies, and products of six main STM players: Reed Elsevier, John Wiley, Kluwer Academic Press, Thomson, Taylor & Francis, and Springer Science+Business Media. For commercial STM content vendors, the Briefing provides competitive and market analysis plus a road map for navigating through the Open Access revolt. For content deployment professionals, it includes advice for getting the best deal and maximizing the value of STM content purchased from all of the vendors and publishers serving this large and important market.

Methodology

Competitor Assessment: STM - Revolution In The Land Of The Giants is based on extensive interviews with STM sector stakeholders. In addition to in-depth secondary research, Outsell analysts spoke to STM content buyers in academic, corporate, and government libraries, research scientists who create and use STM content, and many content vendors. Outsell's Leigh Watson Healy, Chief Analyst; Chuck Richard, Vice President and Lead Analyst; Janet Cleary, Director and Lead Analyst; Susan Brown, Senior Information Analyst; and Lisa Nash, Senior Information Analyst, also tapped Outsell's proprietary databases for this Briefing. These include Outsell's information on over 3,000 information content vendors in the corporate, academic, and government markets as well as details on the habits and preferences of over 30,000 information users -- professionals in market and competitive intelligence, knowledge management, portal management, and more.

Availability

Competitor Assessment: STM - Revolution In The Land Of The Giants is distributed to clients as part of Outsell's flagship InfoAboutInfo(SM) service. The 36-page report is also available for purchase exclusively at the Outsell store. Visit www.outsellinc.com to browse or buy from Outsell's extensive catalog of Briefings. Each Briefing contains expert opinions and recommendations about hot industry topics, companies, products, and trends, which are backed by a substantial investment in primary research.

About Outsell

Founded in 1994, Outsell is the only research and advisory firm that focuses exclusively on the IC Industry. Delivering high-quality, fact-based research, analysis, and advice, Outsell helps world-class content vendors, Global 2000 companies, government agencies, and leading educational institutions increase their understanding of users and end-markets, assess content quality and effectiveness, benchmark operations, hire and retain executives, and develop more successful internal and commercial content products and services.

Outsell is headquartered at 330 Primrose Road, Suite 510, Burlingame, CA 94010. Phone 650-342-6060, fax 650-342-7135, and on the Web, www.outsellinc.com.