ebook acquisition collectives

[Eric Hellman <eric@hellman.net>]

I've been exploring the possibilities for open-access ebook 
acquisition collectives, with a bit of a twist.

My logic goes like this.

1. Ideally, libraries should be providing access to content to 
anyone for free
2. Therefore, libraries should be trying to acquire rights to 
give ebooks to anyone for free.
3. For ebooks, the coexistence of free access and toll access to 
a particular work is problematic
4. Every publisher has his price for any book.
5. The way for libraries to meet the publishers price for most 
books is to organize into a cooperative.
6. The amount of money libraries spend on books is sufficient to 
acquire outright many works sold mostly to libraries.
7. So... why isn't this happening?


http://go-to-hellman.blogspot.com/2010/08/library-monopsony-for-monographic-ebook.html


Eric Hellman
President, Gluejar, Inc.
Montclair, NJ