Collection Development for the Digital Age: The Case of Malaysia

Abstract

Many libraries in Malaysia are currently experiencing a transition from a traditional print-based collection to one that holds a mix of print and electronic resources. This has led to the existence of so called hybrid libraries. It has also led to changes in collection development practices. The aim of this paper is to investigate the practices of and challenges confronting collection development in different library environments : traditional, hybrid and digital. Four libraries were selected to represent the three different environments : the Petaling Jaya Municipality Library, the Multimedia University Library, the International Islamic University Malaysia and the Hypermedia Library of Subang Jaya. Aspects of accessibility, including consortia access to electronic resources, governance, cost benefit issues, budgetary appropriations, selection criteria, and other collection development issues are discussed. It is hoped that raising these issues will contribute to strategic decisions of management and policy in the development of digital libraries in Malaysia.