UNC system debates e-book licensing, funding issues

As UNC-system libraries move into the digital age, they face several roadblocks from e-book publishers, who are wary of losing money by selling e-books to university library networks.

The Triangle Research Libraries Network held a summit this summer on licensing issues affecting e-books vendors and library networks.

N.C. State University is in the Triangle Research Library Network with Duke University, N.C. Central University and UNC-CH.

The network will present its findings Nov. 4 at the Charleston Conference, an annual gathering where librarians and publishers from across the nation meet and discuss issues impacting library content.

One of the biggest providers of online content across the state, NC LIVE, has lost about $750,000 in funding throughout the last couple of years, said Tim Rogers, the online library resource’s executive director.

NC LIVE purchases e-books from publishers and provides content to institutions across the state, including community colleges and universities like UNC-CH.

But because of funding cuts, the online resource isn’t always able to afford what the publishers charge.

“We don’t want them to give (the e-book rights) away,” Rogers said. “But we do want a reasonable price.”

Rogers said an NC LIVE research advisory committee will put together a plan during the next six to eight months about how the organization will handle the funding cut along with increasing e-book prices.

University libraries are also having trouble providing offline access to e-book content.

Chad Haefele, the UNC-CH emerging technologies librarian, said the University has about 2.5 million e-books available to students, but only a small portion of those can be downloaded onto individual computers. The rest are only accessible online.

“I always try to advocate for downloadable books with vendors,” he said. “Knock on wood, we’ll have more downloadable titles by spring semester.”

NCSU loans out Kindles with requested titles already downloaded onto them so students can read e-books without having to purchase them.

Students pay an electronic technology fee every semester that funds the tablets.

David Woodbury, director of NCSU’s learning commons services, said the roles of libraries have been to give access to content, and that they will have to work with publishers to continue serving the public.

“I think everyone is recognizing the impact iPads and Kindles have had on information access,” Woodbury said.

Haefele said each subject area of UNC-CH’s library is given a budget amount that they can use at their discretion for either print or electronic materials.

“Do we want to say we prefer electronic over print?” he said. “We don’t know yet.”

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