Libraries in Surrey struggling to provide e-books
COPYRIGHT laws and reluctant publishers are preventing libraries from providing e-books to customers.
Titles such as publishing sensation Fifty Shades Of Grey are not being made available to local libraries via e-book as publishers are unwilling to give them the lending rights.
-
The library service is changing but digital customers are missing out, with latest titles not being made available via e-book
-
The library service is changing but digital customers are missing out, with latest titles are not being made available via e-book
-
The library service is changing but digital customers are missing out, with latest titles are not being made available via e-book
Surrey Library Service's Helen Leech says publishers do not know how to handle the influx of e-book library customers and are scared of copyright infringements.
"There have been an awful lot of problems with e-books, with publishers struggling to come up with a business model," she said. "They can see it's going to change the way they'll deliver books but they can't figure out how to protect their business."
Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk
View detailsOur heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.
Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk
Contact: 01858 468192
Valid until: Sunday, June 30 2013
More than half the libraries in the country now offer an e-book service, but many, including Redhill, are unable to offer the books their customers want.
Publishers have been unwilling to provide their latest titles because they fear they could be digitally copied once downloaded and distributed to the public.
There is also some confusion over the different settings of books that can be read on e-readers and tablets.
Under Digital Rights Management laws, publishers own the rights to how digital content is used.
But libraries have urged publishers to work closer to find a solution to this problem.
Jacqueline Camm-Jones, who has been manager at Redhill library for six years, said: "It would be a more popular service if we had a broader catalogue but we're struggling because we can't get the publishers to let people put them onto e-readers."
A spokesman for The Publishers Association said: "E-lending policies are new, complex and rapidly evolving.
"Publishers are working with libraries to create a sustainable model of e-book lending in libraries which can satisfy the needs of all parties involved."
Comments
by desmondclarke
Tuesday, August 14 2012, 11:13AM
“Helen Leech is well aware that the issues surrounding e-book lending are complex, including the need to recompense authors for such lending by introducing Publc Lending Right as happens for print books. The Government is setting up a working group to try to address the legal, copyright and technical issues and consider whether they should establish a national e-book lending service (why do we need to deal with 151 separately managed library authorities just in England?).
The situation in the USA is more positive with some of the senior state librarians being anxious to understand and address the real concerns of authors, publishers and booksellers while meeting the needs of their library users.”