Our first keynote came from Lee Rainie, director of internet, science, and technology at Pew Research Center. He shared some soon-to-be-published data (keep an eye on libraries.pewinternet.org) that’s worth thinking about. He paired two trends: On the one hand, enthusiasm for the public library and librarians is on the rise. On the other, library use … Continue reading New Reports: Ebooks, Libraries, and Reading Trends
What does an ebooks marketplace look like if, in addition to libraries, content providers are equally committed to a sustainable ecosystem that enables viability for all players—publishers, vendors, authors, libraries and, of course, readers? It looks a great deal like the session “Making Progress in Digital Content” that took place at the 2015 ALA Annual Conference, … Continue reading Making Progress in Digital Content
The poor and deteriorating state of library ebook lending in 2011 catalyzed this initiative. Waiting for publishers to take different actions would have likely worsened the conditions for libraries. A proactive policy stance must become the library community’s mainstream way of thinking and operating. This is true for ebooks and large publishers, but also more … Continue reading A Policy Revolution for Digital Content
At the same time, ALA and libraries have been exploring additional options for empowering our users to discover and publish digital content, considering privacy and preservation concerns, and expanding the lens of focus to other forms of digital content. The most recent round of John S. and James L. Knight Foundation challenge grants intersects in … Continue reading Empowering Libraries to Innovate
Noticing this, a librarian calls up some local merchants and tells them that Alice might be pregnant. When Alice visits her local bookstore, the staff has some great suggestions about newborn care for her. The local drugstore sends her coupons for scent-free skin lotion. She reads What to Expect When You’re Expecting at the library, … Continue reading Toward the Post-Privacy Library?
In each of these situations, staffers work to solve local needs for their institutions’ communities and constituencies. These professionals are also contributing directly to regional and national efforts. The local work at each of these organizations is making use of and contributing to the national digital platform for libraries and museums. The national digital platform … Continue reading The National Digital Platform for Libraries and Museums
The good news for libraries is that investment in drivers of inclusive growth—public services such as schools, libraries, and telecommunications infrastructure—represents a critically important risk mitigation strategy. Education and knowledge are essential to successful communities, organizations, and economies, and they represent the future for the information profession if, of course, library professionals keep pace with … Continue reading Transforming the Library Profession
Then, before reading, what if users had to navigate a complex registration process that could take well over an hour and create user accounts with the for-profit providers, who then try to sell them books while they browse for something to borrow? While some libraries have outsourced library services to private contractors, this approach has … Continue reading Click, Click, Read
When collection budgets are squeezed and shelf space is at a premium, digital collection assets can shine … assuming they’re available and affordable. Librarian Jessamyn West wrote at librarian.net in a 2012 article “Let’s Be Honest about the Ebook Situation” that several large publishers, including Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and Hachette Book Group, refused to sell … Continue reading Building Out the Book Niches
Publishers put forward new, innovative business models; platform providers responded by enhancing their services; and librarians waited patiently (or sometimes not) for access to titles while their patrons did the same. It all worked out more or less the way these things should. The commercial market adjusted to digital disruption and did so because all … Continue reading Digital Library 2.0: Continued Expansion of the Universe
Two issues came to the fore in the fall. Adobe Digital Editions experienced a privacy breach that led to unencrypted personal information being transmitted online. DCWG responded, and the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) and ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) assisted with technical and policy advice. Adobe took quick action to address the … Continue reading ALA’s DCWG, Ebooks, and Directions
Among the Big Five, only Hachette Book Group does not offer public libraries the opportunity to license its ebooks through consortia. Hachette says it evaluates each consortium on a case-by-case basis “using criteria including number of libraries, size of population, and circulation numbers.” Some consortia have been approved. The other publishers say they license to … Continue reading Publishers, Distributors, and Consortia
