The director of cultural services for Huron County has asked for some help from the Library board and the county in negotiating fees for leasing e-books from publishers.
Meighan Wark explains the popularity of e-books is growing but the cost of leasing the e-books from publishers is presenting some challenges for libraries. Wark says some publishers have set the price for libraries at three to five times the price for individual consumers.
Wark says publishers have also set limits on the number of times a library can access a title and set time limits on how long they can access that title. Wark is asking the Library board and the county to ask the minister of tourism, culture and sport to work with the federal government as well as other provincial ministries to see if a solution can be worked out.
Wark adds e-books are a relatively new format for libraries and most of them do work together as part of a consortium but they don't have the clout to influence publishers with some kind of government support.
