Library Stuff

“As big six publishers and librarians prepare for more meetings this week in New York, Macmillan officials have confirmed to PW that the publisher has developed a pilot project that would enable e-book lending for libraries—a potentially major development. However, details of the pilot remain undisclosed. “We have been working hard to develop an e-book lending model that works for all parties, as we value the libraries and the role they play in the reading community,” reads a statement provided to PW. “We are currently finalizing the details of our pilot program and will be announcing it when we are ready, and not in reaction to a demand.”

via Publishers Weekly

“Considered hallowed ground for academic researchers, all those who enter have been forced to sign a pledge undertaking not to remove any books from there. Now all could be about to change. Plans are being discussed to allow students to borrow books from the Bodeian for the first time, and the very idea has caused a stir amongst academics and students.”

via Telegraph

WNYC Culture – “Digital books are the fastest growing area of publishing, and libraries are seeing a surge in demand for e-book titles — but finding an e-book can be tough. The Central Library in Queens became the first in New York City to start lending e-readers last month — 50 of them, pre-loaded with dozens of books each. “They went as quick as the customers came through the door, the e-readers was gone,” librarian Wanda Wright said.”

Out-Law – “The compensation that music artists and film producers are due when their copyrighted material is made temporarily available to the public should not be exclusively based on set fees, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has said. Organisations that loan or rent copyrighted material available to the public should have to pay compensation based on the harm it does to rightsholders, the ECJ said. It said compensation levels should be determined by the number of copyrighted works organisations make available and the number of people who can access them. “The higher the number of protected works made available by a public lending establishment, the greater will be the prejudice to copyright,” the ECJ said in a ruling.