The case studies were conceived to illustrate real-world examples of how digital resources are working to sustain themselves, with all the particularities that each unique project brings to the table. The cases do not just focus on the mechanics of the revenue model, but also examine the the choices project leaders must make when balancing revenue generation and near-term benefits with mission and long-term risks. In sharing the valuable experiences that actual project leaders have had while confronting their sustainability challenges, we hope to provide the community with detailed narratives of a process that is central to the survival of digital resources, and yet rarely openly discussed.

 

To arrive at the current roster of case studies, we used clear selection criteria. The primary requirement for the set was that it should illustrate a wide range of sustainability models beyond the grant funding and institutional support that many projects rely upon. We sought projects that employed at least one among a wide range of models:

 

While identifying a range of revenue models was the priority, other elements were important as well. The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) and the Strategic Content Alliance (SCA), as the primary sponsors of this project, requested that we develop several cases studies of projects in the United Kingdom, and some of projects in European countries. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) supported the writing of cases on projects hosted in the United States. Other elements we took into consideration included:

 

 

While the notion of a “digital resource” is quite broad, for this study we chose to focus in particular on those projects that are content-based, rather than on software development projects, and we have made efforts to include projects dealing with various media types, including text, data, still images, and video.

 

Once we had our targets assembled, we approached project leaders and invited them to participate. Not all were interested in having their project become the subject of a case study, sometimes citing lack of time, but more often citing privacy concerns. The topic we were most interested in exploring was the ability of digital projects to sustain themselves – a sensitive subject, particularly for those projects or divisions of organizations that may find themselves struggling at this time; on the other end of the spectrum, we encountered some projects in the for-profit arena that appeared to be thriving but were not keen to share the methods they had developed, for fear of weakening their competitive edge. Even among not-for-profit organizations, projects that have contracts with partners or vendors can be required to maintain confidentiality on details relating to terms of service and financial results.

 

The group of projects we selected represents quite a range: from small projects deeply embedded in very large organizations, to independently run resources; from projects whose sites register millions of visitors per month, to those whose sites register just thousands per month; from projects whose goal is to generate a profit, to projects whose leaders acknowledge that their revenue streams will never be able to fully support the costs of running the sites without additional sources of support, but who define “sustainability” in terms of fulfilling the mission of the host institution.

 

To learn as much as possible about the revenue model, the cost structures of the project, and the strategic decision-making processes that led the organization’s leaders to the model they are using, we attempted to interview key personnel most familiar with the model at hand. In most cases this involved the project leader, who frequently served as the point person for arranging other interviews within and outside the organization. Often this process led us to interview others, sometimes outside the organization, in order to frame a richer view of the strengths and weaknesses of the models under investigation. Interviews were conducted on site where possible, and most often by at least two team members: one to conduct the interview and the second to take notes. These interviews were followed up with additional queries by phone or by mail, as needed, and supplemented by documents researched or supplied by the interviewees, including sample forms, annual reports, planning documents, and presentations.

 

These case studies are intended to accomplish two main goals: first, to present in as much detail as possible the inner workings of the sustainability models that these projects are currently using, including revenue-generation and cost-savings strategies; and second, to highlight the strategic decisions that leaders of these initiatives have had to make, including the trade-offs inherent in many of the choices.

 

Thus, the case study format that we have used is a hybrid of description and analysis. The opening sections of each case help to situate the project within its larger organizational structure and outline its sustainability goals and methods. The next sections are analytical, addressing key issues in sustainability that appear to have had a strong impact on the success of the sustainability model: how the project leaders understand their users, communicate the value of the project to others, and seek to innovate and experiment in order to grow. Finally, the last sections assess the benefits and the challenges of the particular sustainability path the project has chosen to follow in terms of meeting the project’s goals, as well as the extent to which its model might serve as a useful exemplar for others.