Lending e-books.
This is my two cents worth.
Just my opinion.
But then isn't thats what blogs are for?
Can you remember having to wind up the alarm clock before going to bed?
Or put a roll of film in a camera?
Or put a roll of film in a camera?
The potential of computer technology and in particular digitisation, to completely decimate long established practices has not escaped us.
But are ebooks really a threat to public libraries?
When I see an online article entitled something like "Libraries, The end is Nigh" I feel saddened because in some places it's true. As of January 2011 some 400 UK libraries were under threat of closure.
But not because of ebooks. In Australia, the economy is of course much healthier. As radio did not kill newspapers and TV did not kill radio, ebooks will not spell the end of print and as libraries main stock format is the printed book, so I would suggest that borrowing library books in the time honoured tradition is not about to end any time soon.
But not because of ebooks. In Australia, the economy is of course much healthier. As radio did not kill newspapers and TV did not kill radio, ebooks will not spell the end of print and as libraries main stock format is the printed book, so I would suggest that borrowing library books in the time honoured tradition is not about to end any time soon.
But I had to watch when the BBC produce a short video "Do ebooks spell the end of lending libraries"?
What I found most worrying about this short video was the impression that overall, ebook publishers would prefer to cut public libraries out of the distribution model altogether.
At 7:40 minutes into the video a representative of the UK Publishers Association describes their preferred library model:
i.e. You want to borrow an ebook you have to visit the library to do so. - . No downloading from home! And he is serious. Completely missing the point about digital downloading, i.e. the convenience of doing it at home!
And as for the future of ebooks as public library stock, companies such as Overdrive have come from nowhere and built a thriving buisness creating a digital version of a lending library which they have sold to over 13,000 libraries worldwide.
So far so good but the future is not so rosy. Some publishers appear to be getting cold feet.
You may have seen email regarding certain major publishers withdrawing some titles from being available in electronic format. And as Barb has previously posted, under a plan by Harper Collins, library eBooks will expire after being checked out 26 times. And an ongoing problem has been the fight over the geographical rights to distribute ebooks in different markets.
You may have seen email regarding certain major publishers withdrawing some titles from being available in electronic format. And as Barb has previously posted, under a plan by Harper Collins, library eBooks will expire after being checked out 26 times. And an ongoing problem has been the fight over the geographical rights to distribute ebooks in different markets.
Add to this the Digtal Rights Management, (DRM) copy protection which blights the Overdrive model.
One staff member was prompted to express the fear that "...The whole e-title situation in regards to library lending may drag on for years.
I fear it might.
What do you think?
Max
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1 comment :
Great post Max - exactly what blogs are for!
I agree that these latest developments on the ebook front are a concern for libraries and their users. I think libraries should just stop paying for such rubbish products.
If we keep paying for products with so many obstacles to use where's the incentive for publishers and vendors to change their practice? Exercise our consumer rights to not buy products that are unusable due to the conditons placed upon their use.
There is a growing backlash against the current ebook market, illustrated by the eBook User's Bill of Rights published by the Librarian in Black. It's an interesting addition to the debate.
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