The JISC Usage Statistics Review Project is aimed at formulating a fundamental format for repository log files and at proposing a standard for their aggregation to provide meaningful and comparable item-level usage statistics for electronic documents like e. g. research papers and scientific resources. Core element of the project is a stakeholder workshop. This workshop was held in Berlin on July 7th/8th 2008.

The following elements describing usage events were agreed upon the workshop:

• Who: Identification of user / session
• What: Item identification
• What: Type of request performed (e. g. full-text, front-page, including failed/partially fulfilled requests)
• When: Date and time
• Usage event ID

Optional elements:

• From where: Referrer / the referring entity
• Identity of the service

The thus described usage events should be exchanged in the form of OpenURL Context Objects using OAI-PMH. Automated access should be tagged. The definition of automated access has to be straightforward with the option of gradual refinement.

Users have to be identified unambiguously but without recording personal data to avoid conflicts with privacy laws.

Policies on statistics should be formulated for the repository community as well as the publishing community. Information about statistics policies should be available on services like OpenDOAR and RoMEO.