Consortia for the sharing of electronic resources represent one of the most important current developments in the field of libraries. These increasingly widespread cooperation programmes present a double nature: they show the characteristics of initiatives which are transitory in nature; on the other hand they demonstrate their long-term potential. Comparative research into consortia in Western Europe was aimed at determining their principal characteristics, emerging models, and the critical factors of their development. From an analysis of 18 consortia from the viewpoints of scope and geographical dimension, policy and programme, governance, infrastructure and financing, a diverse picture emerges, with notable differences between countries in terms of both level of development and manner of implementation. In addition to historic and cultural factors, various other factors of a political and managerial nature, such as the degree of political and administrative decentralization, national technological programmes, the regular availability of special financing, organizational structure, and the legal status of the consortium, all play a decisive role. Three principal consortia models seem to be establishing themselves: a centralized model (principally in the Nordic countries), a decentralized model (currently the most widespread), and a regional model (in some countries with decentralized political systems).
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