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About
Net Library:
EBSCO Publishing and
OCLC finalized an agreement whereby EBSCO has acquired NetLibrary®, a
leading eBook platform and service. OCLC saw EBSCO as the ideal candidate to
continue to serve NetLibrary customers, and take the service to new
heights.
EBSCO’s goal is to
better serve research by offering the strongest possible collection of materials
and the greatest accessibility and usability. As eBooks become more prominently
used and relied upon by libraries, they are an ideal addition to the EBSCO suite
of resources. As EBSCOhost® is the single most-used premium research
platform in libraries worldwide, and overall usage continues to steadily
increase, it follows logically that searching databases and eBooks on a single
platform would create a more complete, fruitful one-stop research experience for
end users. Many librarians have requested EBSCO move in this direction, and we
are pleased to be doing so.
At present, EBSCO
will continue to support and enhance the NetLibrary platform, with the
goal of enabling EBSCOhost to appropriately incorporate eBook
availability in the near future. In the coming months, we will be conducting
focus groups, advisory sessions and usability testing to better understand the
strengths and weaknesses of eBook platforms, and investigate the various models
for accessibility and purchase. Additionally, we plan to maintain the dark
archive of eBooks to ensure accessibility for customers who have purchased and
will continue to purchase NetLibrary eBooks. MARC records for these
eBooks will also continue to be provided (at no cost).
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