Download statistics - what do they tell us? The example of research online, the open access institutional repository at the University of Wollongong, Australia

A study was undertaken of download and usage statistics for the institutional repository at the University of Wollongong, Australia, over the six-month period January-June 2006. The degree to which research output was made available, via open access, on Internet search engines was quantified. Google was identified as the primary access and referral point, generating 95.8% of the measurable full text downloads of repository content. Further long-term studies need to be carried out to more precisely identify factors affecting download rates of repository content. This data will assist institutions and faculty in measuring research impact and performance, as an adjunct to traditional bibliometric tools such as citation indexes.