Friday, October 21, 2011

Libraries Got Screwed by Amazon and Overdrive

This blog post comes courtesy of the very talented and hardworking SLIS tech Nicole - thanks so much for sending this around and allowing FLIF to repost your message.  This is a really important issue in public libraries right now as Kindles and e-readers become more popular. It is a lot easier for these kinds of decisions to get made at the top and passed on down to users without a venue for discussion or effective complaint when we don't know anything about it. As proto-librarians (and often current library workers) it is our responsibility to educate ourselves and follow how digital books are being produced and restricted. This is going to be a very important medium for readers and we have an opportunity to be a part of the discussion as these important decisions get made. 

Ok FLIF-ers, it's time to get educated and get loud, this issue matters. Check out the excellent video below:
 
from Nicole: 

Intellectual freedom and privacy are fundamental values in our profession and according to Sarah Houghton (Librarian in Black) the new Amazon/Overdrive deal with libraries pushes the boundaries of these values.
I encourage you all to watch the video at the link below/attached and then forward on. I have also included links to less biased commentary - the announcement from Overdrive and a Library Journal article
Fair warning...there is some swearing. Librarian in Black is really pissed!

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