The UK's Research Information Network funded a two-year project to describe and assess patterns of the use, value and impact of e-journals by researchers. E-journals: their use, value and impact - final report takes an in-depth look at how UK researchers use electronic journals, the value they bring to universities and research institutions and the contribution they make to research productivity, quality and outcomes.

According to CIBER, who carried out the research:

"Publishers began to provide online access to articles in scholarly journals just over a decade ago. Numerous studies have shown how much researchers have welcomed enhanced and easy access to unprecedented numbers of journals. But until recently there has been little detailed evidence about how researchers have changed their behaviours in response to this revolution in access, about how they make use of online journals, or about the benefits that flow from that use."