This article presents an analysis of costs for digitizing and long-term storage at the Riksarkivet (National Archives, RA) in Stockholm, Sweden. This example includes forecasts of cost development for the next few years which may help other institutions in analysing their own costs and budgeting for long-term storage.
This often quoted article, published in the framework of the TAPE project, is important for what it has to say about additional costs, often not addressed in digital preservation planning – that of staff, equipment and facilities. Based on a real case scenario, this article was one of the first to illustrate that digital preservation isn’t necessarily doable because of cheap storage. A reference for those costing digital preservation projects to consider.