Do E-Reader Owners Read More Books? [INFOGRAPHIC] The Ultimate Guide to Publishing Your eBook on Amazon’s Kindle Platform. So you want to start a Kindle lending program | code4lib. Update: With the introduction of Whispercast, the ability to register a device from the Amazon website using a serial number has been removed. It pretty much takes the best part of the following process and throws it in the trash. Bummer. This article is about Kindle ebook readers. The actual hardware Kindles and not the iOS app, Android app, web reader, or Kindle Fire. Just the good old Kindle hardware reader. Yes, I understand there are countless ebook reader platforms and DRM free ebook collections to choose from, but if you’ve read past the title you probably understand that I’m going to focus on Kindles and content purchased from Amazon.
Lending out Kindles to patrons may, on the surface, seem like a really easy thing to do and undoubtedly there is a lot of excitement with regards to using “technology” in the library. The issues around how to circulate your Kindles is beyond the scope of this article, although I will do my best to describe how our system works. Where To Start. E-Book Formats and Devices Infographic. Ebooks - Library eBooks Part II: The Fully Illustrated Guide to Borrowing eBooks.
Library eBooks Part I looked at how the big six, now the big five, publishers licensed their books to libraries using three different vendors. Some of the publishers have decided to offer their collections on all three platforms while others are only using one or two. Libraries then select one or more of the platforms to offer the books to their patrons. As a result, your library may only offer OverDrive, which only carries books from some, but not all, of the publishers. As in all new industries there is a period of time in which confusion and chaos seem to reign, and for my money, that is what we are seeing in the world of the publisher/platform/library. Further confusion is created since not all three platforms support all readers, Kindle being not fully supported in two out of three of the platforms. Only OverDrive fully supports Kindle, Axis 360 provides an app for the Kindle Fire only and the 3M Cloud Library doesn't support any reading on a Kindle.
But first, get a library card. A Guide to Ebook Purchasing. For those libraries looking to purchase e-books, you are not alone. According to the Library Journal 2011 survey of ebook penetration and use in libraries, 95% of academic, 82% of public, and 44% of school libraries are already offering ebooks, and many more are considering it. For anyone contemplating purchasing ebooks, asking why is the most important question. What are the primary goals of purchasing ebooks in your library or your consortium? Is it to expand the collection or to increase the buying power of a group of libraries? Is it to replace existing print collections, offer new services, or experiment with new business models in the hope of saving money? Print to digital Buying a print book is relatively easy. Business models There are a variety of business models available for purchasing ebooks.
Publishers, aggregators, and wholesalers The greatest challenge of purchasing directly from publishers is that some publishers will not negotiate with libraries. Buying through consortia. Threats to Digital Lending. When the Kansas Digital Library Consortium’s contract with digital-content distributor OverDrive was up for renewal last year, two issues made Kansas State Librarian Joanne Budler decide it was time to move on and transfer the ebook titles to another vendor who could offer a better deal. First, OverDrive planned to raise license fees by almost 700% by 2014. But even more disturbing was a change to the contract that would have changed the consortium’s ownership of the ebooks to a subscription. OverDrive said that the libraries had only leased access; they did not own the books, and therefore could not retain access when they changed providers.
The Kansas attorney general’s office argued otherwise, saying that the wording of the license agreement indicated that the library did own the ebooks. Taking issue with licensing The situation in Kansas highlights the uncertainty about ownership of ebook content. In fact, libraries have been renting their digital content for more than 30 years. Ebooks and School Libraries. In their efforts to implement ebooks, school libraries face a set of challenges that differ from those confronting their public and academic counterparts. In addition to the struggle they share with other types of libraries to offer current bestselling fiction ebooks, school libraries are also working to secure backlist fiction, curriculum-focused nonfiction, and multiple copies of books for group use.
At the same time, however, they are fortunate to have a strong working relationship with many different publishers and vendors that work within the K–12 market. To better explore these challenges and advantages, it helps to consider a few different school library ebook-use scenarios. A common desire in K–12 buildings is to adopt ebook readers as a replacement for costly and heavy printed texts. An English department that considered making this change was stymied by the lack of availability of some of the texts on their reading list.
Ebooks-in-education. Should Libraries Get Out of the eBook Business? Or get out at least until there is a better system? I know what you are going to say, I can hear it already – “We can’t! Our patrons demand ebooks!” Except the truth is our patrons want a lot of things we can’t give them – to always be first on the waiting list for the new James Patterson, to not pay fines when their books are late, for the library to be open earlier or later, or to have a system besides Dewey because despite using it their entire lives they still cannot figure it out. When it comes to ebooks, we cannot give them what they want, not really, we cannot give them books from Simon and Schuster or MacMillian or new books from Penguin or Hatchet, and not more than 26 times from HarperCollins, and probably not many books from Random House. The Demand: First let’s look at the demand.
The Supply But what are we serving them? The Process A Mess The whole thing is a hot mess. I can’t help but wonder if Guy LeCharles Gonzales is right when he writes: Read More Similar Posts: Calling Timeout on Library eBook Integration. Forgive me if I don’t applaud the announcement that Penguin has returned try out a library eBook lending program with the New York Public Library. I know I’m going to eat my own words since I’m someone who really wants publishers and libraries to experiment with different eBook lending models, but I can’t say that the starting point for this experiment is exactly what I had in mind. Six months embargo on new releases and titles that expire after a year? At least the price is projected close to retail for, well, I don’t know what.
A Mission: Impossible style file that self destructs after it has fulfilled its purpose? I don’t see anything about the lending portion of it so I’m wondering if it is still the ‘one book one person’ model (which would be my guess) or something new and different. Granted, they are looking to monitor and modify the program every few months so things could change. What’s the hurry? Yes, these numbers are increasing each year. Like this: Like Loading... A Primer on Ebooks for Libraries Just Starting With Downloadable Media. (Library Journal is presenting a series of articles, Exploring Ebook Options, that takes an indepth look at some of the ebook platforms that are now in the marketplace.
Baker & Taylor’s Axis 360 and Freading from Library Ideas have already been profiled. This story provides an environmental scan.) According to a survey conducted by the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA) in the summer of 2011, 39 percent of public libraries had not begun to offer downloadable media service (ebooks, audiobooks, movies) to their communities. COSLA reported that small, rural libraries with limited budgets were most likely not to have access to downloadable media. COSLA believes that ebooks will be the preferred format for reading materials in the future. Why buy ebooks? There are a variety of reasons for purchasing ebooks, and the first is access.
Furthermore, there has been an explosion of interest in ebooks and ereaders. That said, ebooks have just as many reasons not to be purchased. Ebooks and libraries–an uneasy relationship « @ the library. Electronic books–that still sounds strange to me, like electronic cigarettes or fast food. Almost an oxymoron–electronic books are two words strung together that have nothing to do with each other by themselves, but put them together and voila! But oxymoron or not, ebooks are here so we better get used to them. Here are some of the facts about the library’s relationship with ebooks and what we have seen thus far. Our circulation records show that out of all the items people check out at the Radford Public Library, ebooks comprise 3% of the total figure.
Ebooks are mostly adult fiction and over 900 people or 5% of all of our patrons have signed up to use our ebook provider Overdrive. This service provides digital downloads for library patrons in audio and ebook formats. So interest is there, albeit a small amount. But the drawback is that you don’t actually own the items in electronic format. Libraries are doing what we can to help our patrons access ebooks. Will Kindle ever add support for library books? « Kindle Review – Kindle 3 Review, Kindle vs Nook.
The Kindle is missing a pretty important feature – support for library books. It is a feature that’s a bit overhyped - most libraries don’t have a super-impressive range of books, you have to wait for your turn, and so forth. However, it’s still an important feature. Courtesy Kathy we get this question - Do you feel there is any hope at all that Kindle will ever allow library books? The quick answer would be – No, not really. Not unless Amazon loses its head. However, it’s important to understand why Amazon is reluctant to add a feature that a lot of people, and some Kindle owners, clearly want.
Why is Amazon selling Kindles? Well, perhaps it is to - Create a direct channel to customers.Create a direct channel to customers of good intent.Sell books straight to customers.Become free of Publishers.Save its book revenue stream from digital companies and digital technologies.Become free of Google.Become free of the Internet. Library books don’t feature anywhere. Lots of benefits - Navigating the Ebook Revolution. It’s here. Long heralded, the e-revolution has finally arrived in the form of rapid adoption of e-reader devices. It seems safe to assume that by the end of 2012, public libraries may be directing as much as 20% of their collection budgets to digital content.
By the end of three years, it may be closer to 50%. That shift of resources, at a time when the budget pie itself is shrinking, will have one unsurprising result: The circulation of print will decline if we offer fewer print materials. That, in turn, will accelerate the shifting of resources. There are many players in the rapidly changing publishing environment, and many issues for them to sort through. Meanwhile, it may be helpful to consider the thoughts and concerns of some of those players. The reader Frank Morris is 72 years old. A well-educated and well-off patron, he was thrilled at the instant gratification.
But he came to see me, he said, because he was worried. I could tell he was unconvinced. The writer The bookseller. Bestselling authors call for library ebook lending - District Dispatch. Jodi Picoult helped kick off the campaign. Today, Maureen Sullivan, president of the American Library Association, announced the launch of “Authors for Library Ebooks,” a new initiative that asks authors to stand with libraries in their quest for equitable access to e-books. Bestselling authors Cory Doctorow, Ursula K. Le Guin and Jodi Picoult are helping kick off the campaign. The campaign represents an extension of the ALA’s advocacy strategy to ensure all people have access to the world’s knowledge and literature through our nation’s libraries—regardless of format. Libraries support authors in a range of ways, including: Exposure. “My first job was at a library, and one of the things that I remember so clearly is the wide range of people who came in our doors every day.
Get involved in the campaign by following @Authors4LE and using the hashtag #A4LE. Like this: Like Loading... The eBook User’s Bill of Rights. The eBook User’s Bill of Rights is a statement of the basic freedoms that should be granted to all eBook users. The eBook User’s Bill of Rights Every eBook user should have the following rights: the right to use eBooks under guidelines that favor access over proprietary limitationsthe right to access eBooks on any technological platform, including the hardware and software the user choosesthe right to annotate, quote passages, print, and share eBook content within the spirit of fair use and copyrightthe right of the first-sale doctrine extended to digital content, allowing the eBook owner the right to retain, archive, share, and re-sell purchased eBooks I believe in the free market of information and ideas.
I believe that authors, writers, and publishers can flourish when their works are readily available on the widest range of media. Digital Rights Management (DRM), like a tariff, acts as a mechanism to inhibit this free exchange of ideas, literature, and information. I am a reader. Ebooks Choices and the Soul of Librarianship. Over the last few years, as a fifth of American adults have gotten ereaders, ebooks have transformed the book market and reading landscape. The library market is no exception. There’s now an array of established vendors and emerging options for libraries to choose from in order to deliver ebooks to patrons.
In my job as the librarian at one of the emerging options (Unglue.it), I’ve seen the pros and cons of various models, and thought about what those mean. Here’s my conclusion: ebook models make us choose. And I don’t mean choosing which catalog, or interface, or set of contract terms we want — though we do make those choices, and they matter. I mean that we choose which values to advance, and which to sacrifice. We’re making those values choices every time we sign a contract, whether we talk about it or not. Andromeda Yelton is one of the founding members of Unglue.It. What does this mean for library values? Privacy “With a printed book, there’s no such thing as an analytic. Sharing. Libraries, patrons, and e-books. Released: June 22, 2012 By Kathryn Zickuhr, Lee Rainie, Kristen Purcell, Mary Madden and Joanna Brenner 12% of readers of e-books borrowed an e-book from the library in the past year.
But a majority of Americans do not know that this service is provided by their local library. Some 12% of Americans ages 16 and older who read e-books say they have borrowed an e-book from a library in the past year. Most e-book borrowers say libraries are very important to them and their families and they are heavy readers in all formats, including books they bought and books lent to them.
But most in the broader public, not just e-book readers, are generally not aware they can borrow e-books from libraries. These findings are striking because more than three-quarters of the nation’s public libraries lend e-books. In the general public, even many of those who presumably have an interest in knowing about the availability of free library loans of e-books are not sure about the situation at their local library:
Why Your Library May Not Have the E-Book You Want. Organizing eBooks. Why Libraries Need to Adopt a Paid Membership Program for Country Wide Access to eBooks. How to Talk to Your Patrons About Penguin & Other Publishers Not Loaning eBooks to Libraries. E-Books, Libraries and Democracy. What You Can Do about Ebooks and Libraries. Big Six eBooks in libraries, a comparison chart.