Audio-Visual Media

A/V Media Collections

Ongoing Acquisitions

Pepperdine University Libraries currently purchase the following media formats:

• Streaming video
• Digital music

Streaming Video

The primary purpose of the streaming video collection at Pepperdine University Libraries is to grow a diverse film collection that supports the teaching and research needs of students, faculty, and staff. Towards this goal, Pepperdine librarians work closely with the faculty to support and complement the curriculum of the Film Studies major and the MFA in Screenwriting. The collection also supports faculty research and the undergraduate curriculum by adding specific faculty requests for research and course materials. The librarians work with student organizations to meet their needs. Additionally, the collection at Payson Library and the Graduate Campus Libraries contain a limited amount of material for leisure viewing for students, faculty, and staff.

Policies for Streaming Video Selection

• In instances where Pepperdine Libraries licenses a large package of streaming video titles, the content provider should provide a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) or accessibility statement, be committed to providing captioned video, and offer a process for transcribing uncaptioned titles on request. See, for example, accessibility statements from streaming video content providers, including Kanopy's Accessibility Statement and Alexander Street's Accessibility Statement. Pepperdine Libraries also negotiates accessibility terms in licenses with content providers.  If streaming video titles are to be locally hosted, content providers must provide a .SRT file containing captions at the time of acquisition (if the titles are not already captioned).
• Streaming videos are licensed primarily for faculty and student use in connection with classroom use for academic purposes, pursuant to license agreements. Streaming videos are also licensed in alignment with the Libraries' Selection Considerations for Electronic Resources, including:
  
  
  • The resource is accessible for persons with disabilities
  • The resource is appropriate to the collection, reflecting the programs and curriculum of the University
  • The resource is anticipated to be of significant use to students and faculty; points to consider include:
    
    
    • Provision of unique materials
    • Expected number of users
    • Wider accessibility and/or added-value/advantages over other formats
    • Value for student research and teaching, including specific class needs
    • Currency of information
    • Quality of information, including intellectual level and completeness.
  • Costs, whether subscription or purchase, plus needed back files for subscription and access fees for purchases; comparison of cost of streaming version vs. multiple physical copies
  • Technical considerations such as compatibility with existing hardware and software
  • Impact on library services, including staffing considerations and training needed for effective use
  • Reputation of provider, including confidence in producer's commitment to maintenance and archiving
    
    

Physical A/V Media Collections

• Audio CDs. In addition to its digital music collections, Pepperdine Libraries maintains a small collection of music CDs that reflects the mission of the Music department as well as the greater University community.
• DVDs.
• Audio tapes. Special Collections include historic audiotapes of Pepperdine lectures and special events.
• Film. Special Collections include several films produced at Pepperdine as well as film collections that have been donated as part of archival collections.
• LPs.

Policies for Digital A/V Media Deaccessioning

Digital media resources may be deaccessioned if one of the following criteria is met. Library liaisons are responsible for determining the usefulness of materials in their subject area of responsibility.

1. The resource is deemed out of date and no longer academically useful.
2. The resource is purchased or otherwise made available in an on-line format of equivalent quality.
3. The media is damaged and no longer reliably machine-readable.

Policies for Analog A/V Media Retention

As existing A/V collections become available in digital formats, it is our policy to acquire the digital formats and deaccession the analog copies when and if the following conditions are met:

1. The original analog copy is in an obsolete format. This does not apply to film media, which will be retained in the permanent collections unless too damaged or deteriorated to be usable.
2. Digital content is owned rather than leased. This includes collections that Pepperdine may elect to digitize for inclusion in a digital repository.
3. If digital files are stored onsite, appropriate measures are in place for backup and recovery, and for ongoing digital preservation.
4. If digital files are externally hosted, the hosting vendor is a participant in Portico, JSTOR, or a comparable escrow or archival system that ensures long-term access and preservation. This is the preferred option. As a secondary alternative, the vendor agreement must specify that they provide us with electronic media copies of our content in the event that we terminate our agreement with them or they cease publication.

Exceptions to the above policy

If digital alternatives are leased, analog media versions of the same content may be shifted to a low-use storage facility. Analog media collections may also be deaccessioned if one of the following criteria is met. Library liaisons are responsible for determining the usefulness of materials in their subject area of responsibility.

1. The content in the collection is deemed out of date and no longer academically useful.
2. Content in the collection is made available electronically for public access from an authoritative, reliable source (e.g., the Library of Congress).
3. The media is damaged or deteriorated to the point that it is unreadable and cannot be restored.
4. No machines are available to read an obsolete format.

[Last updated: August 2021.]