Announcement: E-book panel at the Charleston Library Conference

e-Duke Books: What Have We Learned?

When: Friday, November 6th, 4:30-5:15
Where: Francis Marion, Gold Ballroom

Panelists:
Ann-Marie Breaux, Vice President, Academic Service Integration, YBP
Library Services
Michael McCullough, Sales Manager, Duke University Press (moderator)
Lois Schultz, Original Cataloger, Monographic Cataloging Section, Duke
University Libraries
Tammy S. Sugarman, Associate University Librarian for Research Services,
Georgia State University Library

Abstract: E-books have been around for years, but publishers, vendors,
and librarians are still trying to figure out the best ways to work
together to produce, distribute, catalog, and circulate them. Duke
University Press launched the pilot program for its e-Duke Books
Scholarly Collection in 2008, with the full-blown launch in January
2009. The Press spent a long time planning its entry into e-book
publishing, drawing on extensive feedback from librarians, and attempted
to craft a model that would make best use of the size and strength of
its book publishing program, benefit from the experience of its journals
division (which was several years ahead of the books division when it
came to electronic publishing), and deliver the content in a format that
would work for librarians and users.

This session brings together representatives of several of the
stakeholders in the process, including representatives from the Press, a
cataloger who creates the enhanced MARC records for every book in the
collection, a vendor that sells the collection to libraries, and a
library that purchases the collection. We will talk about what is
working, what we did wrong, where changes have been made, and what we’ve
learned. All the panelists have agreed to speak frankly about the
process, in a way that we hope will be helpful to other publishers
planning their own e-book programs, to vendors trying to integrate
e-books into their relations with both publishers and libraries, and to
libraries trying to integrate e-book acquisitions into their
collections. And we will allow time at the end of the presentations for
audience questions and feedback on their experiences.

For more information, please contact Kim Steinle
(ksteinle@dukeupress.edu) or Michael McCullough
(mmccullough@dukeupress.edu).