Tipping point or whipping post?eBooks in NUI Maynooth,

the story so far...

2013 LAI/CILIP Ireland Joint Conference and Exhibition11th April

Hugh Murphy,Senior Librarian, Collection Management Serviceshugh.murphy@nuim.ie

The space we’re in

• Global tipping points• Growth of usage

• Formats• DRM• Devices

It’s easy to get carried away..“By the turn of the century, paper will satisfy less than 5 percent of the total commerce in information.

Although education and entertainment have their own migratory paths and rates, the objective will be the same: paper is going to be replaced with electronic media”

(Kounta, J. (1992). Tomorrow’s libraries: More than a modular telephone jack, less than a complete revolution - Perspectives of a provocateur. Library Hi-Tech, 10(4), 39-50.

1992, p. 39)

…but haven't we reached tipping point?

Tipping point - supply

• 2013: Amazon and Apple patenting the ‘digital bazaar’

• Greater availability of eBooks• Adoption of eBook model by

publishers (academic)• E-readers

Tipping point - demand

• Ebook usage leads to more reading

• Seasonal peaks• Consumers not put off by

issues?

Whipping post - supply

• Multiplicity of providers• Reluctance to adapt?• ‘Big seven’• Prohibitive costs

Whipping post - formats

• EPUB• HTML• .djvu• .lit• .mobi• PDF• .pdb• .kf8• AZW

• BBeB• iBook

DRM

The NUI Maynooth experience

Tipping point

• c390,000 electronic books available

• Full text electronic journals currently number 49,168

• c425,000 print books & journals available

• Mobile devices = game changer

Whipping post

• Providers• Formats• Licences• Resource limitations

Licences

“X reserves the right to introduce appropriate technical

protection measure to control access and/or use of the

Intelligence in accordance with this Agreement, provided that

no such measure shall adversely affect the rights of

the Subscriber or its Authorised Users...”

Unsustainable

“When it comes to eBooks, we cannot give them what they want, not really, we cannot give them books

from Simon and Schuster or Macmillan or new books from Penguin or Hatchet, and not more than

26 times from HarperCollins, and probably not many books from Random House...

...I am no longer convinced that spending ... on the current eBook system is a wise move”

(Bobbi Newman - Librarian by day blog, March 7 2012)

So, why make it even more complex?

WHY WE DID IT

• Tipping point • Proof of concept? • Because we could / should?

Isn’t it what they want?

HOW WE DID IT (1)

LIBRARY

WIDE

INVOLVEMENT

HOW WE DID IT (2)[NUTS AND BOLTS]

• 10 kindles for general, 10 for English• Library Staff usage• Free general books• List of titles submitted to Library• Incentivised in pilot – no fees• Catalogue records

HOW IT WENT

• c100 titles uploaded• Time consuming• Licensing restrictions• Security restrictions• Strong marketing campaign

DID IT WORK?

• Validated our communication model• 90% ‘satisfied’ or ‘very satisfied’• 94% would borrow again• Repeat and increased business from

academics• Devices always on loan

So, everyone is happy?

• Rapid pace of change• Changing user needs• Expectations

Future?

Adapting to different usage methodsSupporting greater interactivity

Paper + digital modelsDeath of the book?