ALA Launches eBooksForAll.org Website

The ALA has released a memo to its members from Wanda Brown.

It reads as follows:

Since we denounced Macmillan Publishers’ planned embargo on eBook sales to libraries in July, ALA members have raised their voices loud and clear to say that access to eBooks in libraries should not be denied or delayed.

Your opposition has taken the form of private letters to Macmillan CEO John Sargent, public statements from chapters condemning the publisher’s new licensing terms, letters to the editor and op-eds. Last week ALA stepped up our #eBooksForAll campaign and released a public petition calling for Macmillan to halt its embargo, scheduled to begin November 1.

Today, ALA launched a website, eBooksForAll.org, with information and tools you can use to invite your patrons to join our movement and demand eBook access for all:

• Frequently asked questions about the planned embargo
• Social media samples and graphics
• Print resources like posters and table tents  
• Media outreach tools

ALA members know Macmillan’s embargo is about more than an eight-week wait for new eBooks. It is up to us to tell our patrons the truth: limiting access to new titles means limiting access for readers.

I encourage you to sign the petition at eBooksForAll.org and use the tools there to share the petition and campaign with your community. Our nation’s libraries have millions of allies. We must work together to ensure equitable access to the world’s knowledge, regardless of format.

More soon. Thanks again for your advocacy.

RF thanks the ALA for its efforts. It will take more than petitions, we think, but spreading the word to the public is important for all of us.