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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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4

Libraries Embrace E-Book Lending

Compatibility issues and reticent publishing industry slow progress

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(Newser) – More than 1 million e-books books were checked out of libraries this year—25% more than all of last year—as libraries offer more and more digital lending. Borrowers can check the book out online—obviating the trip to the library—and can read them on a computer or Sony Reader. Only one borrower per book at a time, and the e-book automatically expires after a couple of weeks—eliminating pesky overdue fees.

Still, there are significant hurdles. Copies can't be read on the Kindle or the iPhone. And the publishing industry is nervous about making borrowing from libraries more convenient, seeing it as another disincentive to buy a book. With digital copies, “I don’t have to get in my car, go to the library, look at the book, check it out,” one publishing exec whose house doesn’t sell to libraries tells the New York Times. Abstainers include Macmillan and Simon & Schuster.

The Sony Reader is compatible with most libraries' digital book formats.
The Sony Reader is compatible with most libraries' digital book formats.   (AP Photo)
Reporters at the New York Public Library read about Sony e-books on laptop computers.
Reporters at the New York Public Library read about Sony e-books on laptop computers.   (AP Photo)
Paper books could make up a smaller percentage of libraries' holding in the future.
Paper books could make up a smaller percentage of libraries' holding in the future.   (AP Photo)
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People still think of libraries as old dusty books on shelves, and it’s a perception we’re always trying to fight. If we don’t provide this material for them, they are just going to stop using the library altogether. - Michael Colford, Boston Public Library

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4 comments
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barthy
Oct 15, 09 10:39 AM CDT
whats a library? Reply
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Timinator2K
Oct 15, 09 10:51 AM CDT
Yet another future digital casualty. Adapt and Thrive or, Welcome to the paper scrap heap of history. This folks, is the mentality of the leading edge and middle-of-the-baby boom pack still at work, trying to ignore the tsunami of the age of societal digitalization. Reply
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diiaannaa
Oct 15, 09 11:35 AM CDT
ehh.. I still prefer a book I can hold in my hands over squinting at the computer Reply
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+1
shopgirl1623
Oct 15, 09 12:08 PM CDT
The publishing industry is in the dinosaur phase, dragging its feet like a dead horse. Publish on demand and ebooks, they need to get on board or sink in a digitized world of content. I forget who said it now, but everything is going to be free and the companies are going to make $$ on subscriptions and services. However I agree with diiaannaa, the local Barnes and Noble is my favorite store, and there's nothing like a book in a child's hands or being tucked in your bed with a good book. Books are here to stay, but publishing needs to modernize, period. By the by... my library has over a thousand audio books available to check out and listen to via the computer... its a great alternative to the radio. Reply
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