FAQ (archived)

We have  two main goals with this campaign:

1. Provide information and raise awareness

- Inform the public, policy makers and politicians about what is happening in today’s libraries;

- Raise awareness about obstacles faced by libraries;

- Engage librarians, politicians and the general public into the campaign.

2. Provoke changes and ensure legal certainty for libraries

a.) We want:

• - Libraries to provide library users with the latest e-books as they do printed book!

• - Libraries to buy e-books at fair prices and on reasonable terms!

• - Authors to receive fair payment for the lending of e-books as they do for printed books by extending Public Lending Right to include the loan of e-books by public libraries!

• - All citizens – not just those who can afford it – to benefit from free access to e-books in public libraries!

b.) Find short term solutions in drafting Fair licensing models and engage with publishers;

c.) Define a middle long-term copyright reform defining a clear copyright law that enables the provision of e-books by libraries all over Europe. of the International WIPO Copyright Treaty.

d.) We want to stimulate and accelerate the process of creating  clear copyright law that enables the provision of e-books by libraries all over Europe.

The financial market and economic conditions that have developed this past years are forcing everyone to take a hard look at their plans. These are tough times for libraries too. We are very concerned about the high prices of e-books. As a result libraries in Europe  are unable to offer  good services to their users.

 

Yes. Libraries are rapidly changing focus and purpose as the digital age develops. To accommodate European library users is important today and tomorrow.  It is essential to improve libraries  by developing resources that include e-books so that they don’t become museums of books.

Libraries serve the whole population without any distinction and guarantee free access to information. 

 

Anyone who wants to make a difference can use and share the campaign material such as campaign posters, postcards and buttons.

 

 

Yes. Whether you are a library user or represent a library, in fact, anyone who wants to make a difference  can help spread the word about the Right to E-read Campaign.

 

The campaign will last until libraries benefit from a clear copyright framework enabling them to work efficiently.

 

EBLIDA Members have a crucial role in this campaign and are engaged in the work.

 

 

The arrival of e-books has opened another avenue for reading and learning, which ultimately impacts us all. Libraries need to have access to e-books and have a  balance of traditional materials with e-materials and in line with the expectations of users.

 

 

You can help with the heavy lifting, i.e. politicians.

Sign our online petition (Translations of the petitions are available!)

Inform your friends, and colleagues.  Act now to protect your right to e-read at the libraries in Europe.

It's a tough job. Thank you for your help!

 

 

The thumbs-up is a positive sign showing approval for an action passed or to come. We believe this positive symbol easily understandable at the European level and an encouraging sign to act on behalf of libraries.

 

 

 

The petition  should be signed  only once by each person otherwise, it is would not be  valid. We thought that creating an account or logging in with an existing Face Book account is the easiest.

The other choices were:

1. Limit the number of signatures allowed from any IP address.

Not a good option for us, colleagues from the same library would have been prevented to sign

2. Protect the petition with a password - each language version

Considering the language issues and the volume, it would have been  limiting the access to signers very heavily.