OCLC, a US-based nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organisation, has been awarded a $99,957 grant by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for a new initiative, ‘The Big Shift: Advancing Public Library Participation in Our Digital Future.’ The purpose of the grant is to more fully understand the challenges that US public libraries face in providing e-book content to borrowers, as they ensure that all Americans continue to have access to commercially produced content through their local public libraries, even as formats change.
OCLC will partner with the American Library Association (ALA) and the Public Library Association (PLA) to review the e-book landscape and jointly develop recommendations for managing the e-book environment, in order to ensure adequate public access to these emerging resources.
Research indicates that libraries are at a tipping point in e-content investment, as the percentage of e-book and e-journal collection expenditures continues to steadily outgrow print books and journals each year - and is likely to increase exponentially with the rapid growth in e-book adoption.
This award builds on an IMLS-supported public library discussion hosted by Martin Gómez at the Los Angeles Public Library in November 2011. Grant activities will include investigating the nature and extent of challenges public libraries are facing in this area, and identifying possible solutions; a convening of public library leaders and others to set specific strategies to ensure public access to digital content; and reporting on strategies that all public libraries can use to advance their own work in local communities.
Gómez (University of Southern California), Patrick Losinski (Columbus Metropolitan Library), Brian Bannon (Chicago Public Library), and Vailey Oehlke (Multnomah County Library) will provide guidance on the program's activities, which will be closely coordinated with the ALA's Digital Content & Libraries Working Group, co-chaired by Sari Feldman (Cuyahoga County Public Library) and Robert Wolven (Columbia University).
