With culture minister Ed Vaizey announcing a government review of e-book lending in September that will call involve publishers, authors, literary agents and the libraries themselves (The Guardian, 2012) it is clear that the business of lending e-books is still unclear for many within the industry and there are still many issues that need to be resolved before e-lending can be an effective and profitable way for consumers to access books.
It is argues by Harold Henke in his 2001book Electronic Books and ePublishing that authors may choose to market their e-books directly to libraries because they enable authors to reach an audience that may not have been reached before. I would however counter argue that this is no longer the case as authors, along with publishers, are weary of making titles available for e-lending as it has serious implications for their royalties (The Bookseller, 2012).
One of the biggest issues for publishers, and a major reason why many like Penguin and Macmillan are refusing to allow their e-books to be available for library lending is that there is no clear pricing structure for the system and therefor no clear way of making a profit. There is a real fear from publishers that they will be out of pocket if the availability of e-books is made free through libraries (Digital Book World, 2012).
Publishers Association chair Richard Mollet summed up the situation by stating "When it is as easy to buy a book as to click a button and borrow one, a lot more people are going to take the borrowing option, and that has serious implications for authors and their royalties, for booksellers and as well for publishers," (The Guardian, 2012).
Copyright is also a big issue when it comes to lending e-books and Penguin claims this is why they pulled their e-book lending service indefinitely in 2011. The publisher claimed that they had to protect authors copyright over their material (Computer Active, 2011). The question stands as to whether this is actually their biggest concern or whether they too fear loss of profits.
It seems that this review will have to look at issues very closely in order to work out a system that will benefit all parties involved in the e-book lending system, those parties being the libraries, the publishers, the authors and ultimately the consumers. It surprises me that amongst all the change taking place within the industry and the force that is digitalisation there is still such disorganisation within the business of e-books. That’s not just e-lending, it includes pricing as well. If e-lending is going to be a success both co-operation from publishers and authors and flexibility from libraries is needed. Without this no agreements will be made and no progress will be seen.
I don’t believe that e-book lending will be stopped altogether as due to the huge and ever growing demand for e-books, with sales increasing by 188% in the first half of 2012 (The Guardian, 2012), the consumer will come to expect such services from libraries. Once an effective pricing system has been implemented I can see now reluctant publishers embracing what the e-lending market has to offer.
Word Count: 527
Bibliography
The Bookseller (2012) Mollet: 'serious implications' of library e-lending. Available at: http://www.thebookseller.com/news/mollet-serious-implications-library-e-lending.html (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Computer Active (2011) Penguin suspends ebook lending service in UK and US. Available at: http://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/2127916/penguin-suspends-ebook-lending-service-uk (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Digital Book World (2012) Librarian Patience Has Run out on E-Book Lending Issues, Library Association Says. Available at: http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2012/librarian-patience-has-run-out-on-e-book-lending-issues-library-association-says/ (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
The Guardian (2012) Ebook lending review announced. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/sep/27/ebook-lending-libraries-government-review (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Henke, H (2001) Electronic Books and ePublishing. A Practical Guide for Authors. London:Springer
It is argues by Harold Henke in his 2001book Electronic Books and ePublishing that authors may choose to market their e-books directly to libraries because they enable authors to reach an audience that may not have been reached before. I would however counter argue that this is no longer the case as authors, along with publishers, are weary of making titles available for e-lending as it has serious implications for their royalties (The Bookseller, 2012).
One of the biggest issues for publishers, and a major reason why many like Penguin and Macmillan are refusing to allow their e-books to be available for library lending is that there is no clear pricing structure for the system and therefor no clear way of making a profit. There is a real fear from publishers that they will be out of pocket if the availability of e-books is made free through libraries (Digital Book World, 2012).
Publishers Association chair Richard Mollet summed up the situation by stating "When it is as easy to buy a book as to click a button and borrow one, a lot more people are going to take the borrowing option, and that has serious implications for authors and their royalties, for booksellers and as well for publishers," (The Guardian, 2012).
Copyright is also a big issue when it comes to lending e-books and Penguin claims this is why they pulled their e-book lending service indefinitely in 2011. The publisher claimed that they had to protect authors copyright over their material (Computer Active, 2011). The question stands as to whether this is actually their biggest concern or whether they too fear loss of profits.
It seems that this review will have to look at issues very closely in order to work out a system that will benefit all parties involved in the e-book lending system, those parties being the libraries, the publishers, the authors and ultimately the consumers. It surprises me that amongst all the change taking place within the industry and the force that is digitalisation there is still such disorganisation within the business of e-books. That’s not just e-lending, it includes pricing as well. If e-lending is going to be a success both co-operation from publishers and authors and flexibility from libraries is needed. Without this no agreements will be made and no progress will be seen.
I don’t believe that e-book lending will be stopped altogether as due to the huge and ever growing demand for e-books, with sales increasing by 188% in the first half of 2012 (The Guardian, 2012), the consumer will come to expect such services from libraries. Once an effective pricing system has been implemented I can see now reluctant publishers embracing what the e-lending market has to offer.
Word Count: 527
Bibliography
The Bookseller (2012) Mollet: 'serious implications' of library e-lending. Available at: http://www.thebookseller.com/news/mollet-serious-implications-library-e-lending.html (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Computer Active (2011) Penguin suspends ebook lending service in UK and US. Available at: http://www.computeractive.co.uk/ca/news/2127916/penguin-suspends-ebook-lending-service-uk (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Digital Book World (2012) Librarian Patience Has Run out on E-Book Lending Issues, Library Association Says. Available at: http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2012/librarian-patience-has-run-out-on-e-book-lending-issues-library-association-says/ (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
The Guardian (2012) Ebook lending review announced. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/sep/27/ebook-lending-libraries-government-review (Accessed: 11th November 2012)
Henke, H (2001) Electronic Books and ePublishing. A Practical Guide for Authors. London:Springer