Report: ESDS generates value for money

[Use the link to access the full text report from ESDS. “The Economic and Social Data Service is a national data archiving and dissemination service which came into operation in January 2003. The service is a jointly-funded initiative sponsored by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC).”] “An economic evaluation of the Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS) reveals that for every pound currently invested in data and infrastructure, the service returns £5.40 in net economic value to users and other stakeholders. This compares favourably with the return on investment previously demonstrated for the British Library and for UK academic libraries in general. The report, commissioned by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and prepared by external consultants, aimed to not only evaluate the economic benefits and impact of ESDS, but also to further develop impact evaluation methods that can provide the research council with robust and consistent estimates for all its investments in data service infrastructure. The newly announced UK Data Service will draw on these strengths, as ESDS will be a key partner in the integrated service, providing users with a unified point of access to an increasingly extensive collection of research data including census data. The evaluation examined data and analyses drawn from a range of sources, including statistics on ESDS users and the data they use; evaluations of research data infrastructures in other disciplines; and documentation on the costs of accessing similar services in the UK and abroad. The authors then conducted structured interviews with 33 key stakeholders and solicited further detailed feedback through two online surveys aimed at data depositors and registered users. In all, 6,773 people were invited to contribute to the report; 1,178 (or 17 per cent) responded. Based on this information, the authors conducted their economic analysis using a range of approaches, from estimates of direct value to users extending out to estimates of wider benefits to users and other stakeholders. The analysis yielded a net economic value of £18m a year (more than five times the ESDS operational budget). In addition, users indicated they would be willing to pay up to £25m a year for its data and services. When asked the amount they’d be willing to accept to give up their use of ESDS for a year, the responses came to £81m. Further analyses revealed research efficiency gains valued from £68m to £112m a year...”