The point is that even with institutional access (including interlibrary loan, shared databases, etc.), a lot of electronic information, which is readily deliverable, is not readily accessible.
On top of that, many people do not have institutional access, and are thus cut off from research results funded primarily or solely by their tax dollars. Or another way to look at it is that many "prestigious" journals will claim exclusive copyright, giving researchers the unfortunate choice between prestige and open access.
I'm still learning about this, as some people I know are pushing in the open research / open access direction.
On top of that, many people do not have institutional access, and are thus cut off from research results funded primarily or solely by their tax dollars. Or another way to look at it is that many "prestigious" journals will claim exclusive copyright, giving researchers the unfortunate choice between prestige and open access.
I'm still learning about this, as some people I know are pushing in the open research / open access direction.