Editorial

Citation

Cassell, K.A. (2012), "Editorial", Collection Building, Vol. 31 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/cb.2012.17131baa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Collection Building, Volume 31, Issue 2

Libraries have always taken enormous pride in their collections. They have chosen materials for their collections carefully within the limits of their budgets. Now with the proliferation of e-books libraries have been put in the position of not being able to subscribe to or acquire e-books they want for their collection. Some publishers including Macmillan and Simon and Schuster have not allowed libraries to purchase or subscribe to the e-book versions of their books. HarperCollins has instituted a limit as to the number of circulations an e-book can have without the library paying again. Penguin has embargoed new titles and Hachette continues to embargo some e-books. This situation has put libraries into a peculiar position in that their users are requesting these titles and the libraries cannot supply them. This time it is not for a lack of money but rather because the content they want is not available to them.

It is hard to understand but the only possible explanation is that the economics of the e-book sales is at the heart of this. Publishers fear that if libraries can circulate e-books with no limits, the public will not buy them. This attitude flies in the fact of all the research that indicates that people who use libraries also buy books. Therefore, to have e-books available in libraries provides a way for users to find out about new titles. Some users will buy e-books as a result of finding out about them from the library. Brantley (2011) in his article, “The library alternative” in Publishers Weekly says that “libraries provide a unique storefront for literature. Publishers must recognize that an important strategic sales opportunity now rests where it has never before existed: libraries may be their best retail outlet.” In discussions I have heard among publishers one of their worries is how the public will discover new book titles. So why this reluctance to put the e-books in libraries where people will discover them?

The sad fact is that librarians have had little or no chance to talk with publishers to explore the economics of publishing e-books and what libraries would have to pay in order to have access to all titles available as e-books. Perhaps the business plans that have been used to date have not been the right ones for this new format. If the finances of e-books are different from print books, then librarians need to understand that and help the publishers plan a fair way to pay for the titles they select. Not having that conversation means that publishers act like libraries will cause them to loose money. This is not necessarily the case.

There are currently conversations taking place as to how to resolve this issue. It is of crucial importance since the present stalemate is not really helping anyone. Libraries do not have access to titles they want resulting in cutting off authors from their readers and publishers missing an opportunity to provide the potential buyers with information about their e-books. It is a situation that deserves a resolution as soon as possible.

Kay Ann Cassell