Kindle the only e-reader to deliver library books wirelessly; read on any Kindle or free Kindle app Amazon’s Whispersync technology automatically stores and synchronizes bookmarks, margin notes and highlights – all available the next time you check out or buy the book

SEATTLE, Sep 21, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — (NASDAQ: AMZN)-Amazon.com today announced that Kindle and Kindle app customers can now borrow Kindle books from more than 11,000 local libraries in the United States. When a customer borrows a Kindle library book, they’ll have all of the unique features they love about Kindle books, including Whispersync, which automatically synchronizes their margin notes, highlights and bookmarks, real page numbers, Facebook and Twitter integration, and more. For more information about borrowing library books for your Kindle or free Kindle apps, go to www.amazon.com/kindle/publiclibraries. To start checking out Kindle library books, visit your local library’s website.

“Starting today, millions of Kindle customers can borrow Kindle books from their local libraries,” said Jay Marine, Director, Amazon Kindle. “Libraries are a critical part of our communities and we’re excited to be making Kindle books available at more than 11,000 local libraries around the country. We’re even doing a little extra here – normally, making margin notes in library books is a big no-no. But we’re fixing this by extending our Whispersync technology to library books, so your notes, highlights and bookmarks are always backed up and available the next time you check out the book or if you decide to buy the book.”

Customers will use their local library’s website to search for and select a book to borrow. Once they choose a book, customers can choose to “Send to Kindle” and will be redirected to Amazon.com to login to their Amazon.com account and the book will be delivered to the device they select via Wi-Fi, or can be transferred via USB. Customers can check out a Kindle book from their local library and start reading on any generation Kindle device or free Kindle app for Android, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac, BlackBerry or Windows Phone, as well as in their web browser with Kindle Cloud Reader.

“This is a welcome day for Kindle users in libraries everywhere and especially our Kindle users here at The Seattle Public Library,” said Marcellus Turner, city librarian for The Seattle Public Library. “We’re thrilled that Amazon is offering such a new approach to library ebooks that enhances the reader experience.”

When borrowing a Kindle book from their local library, customers can take advantage of all of the unique features of Kindle books, including:

• Whispersync technology wirelessly sync your books, notes, highlights, and last page read across Kindle and free Kindle reading apps
• Real Page Numbers let you easily reference passages with page numbers that correspond to actual print editions
• Facebook and Twitter integration makes it easy to share favorite passages with your social networks
• Popular Highlights show you what our community of millions of Kindle readers think are the most interesting passages in your books
• Public Notes allow you to share your notes and see what others are saying about Kindle books

To start checking out Kindle library books, visit your local library’s website.

About Amazon.com

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle, Kindle 3G, Kindle with Special Offers, Kindle 3G with Special Offers and Kindle DX are the revolutionary portable readers that wirelessly download books, magazines, newspapers, blogs and personal documents to a crisp, high-resolution electronic ink display that looks and reads like real paper. Kindle 3G, Kindle 3G with Special Offers and Kindle DX utilize the same 3G wireless technology as advanced cell phones, so users never need to hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot. Kindle is the #1 bestselling product across the millions of items sold on Amazon.

Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, and www.amazon.it. As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management’s expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in Amazon.com’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.

SOURCE: Amazon.com, Inc.

The eBook User’s Bill of Rights is a statement of the basic freedoms that should be granted to all eBook users.

The eBook User’s Bill of Rights

Every eBook user should have the following rights:

• the right to use eBooks under guidelines that favor access over proprietary limitations
• the right to access eBooks on any technological platform, including the hardware and software the user chooses
• the right to annotate, quote passages, print, and share eBook content within the spirit of fair use and copyright
• the right of the first-sale doctrine extended to digital content, allowing the eBook owner the right to retain, archive, share, and re-sell purchased eBooks

I believe in the free market of information and ideas.

I believe that authors, writers, and publishers can flourish when their works are readily available on the widest range of media. I believe that authors, writers, and publishers can thrive when readers are given the maximum amount of freedom to access, annotate, and share with other readers, helping this content find new audiences and markets. I believe that eBook purchasers should enjoy the rights of the first-sale doctrine because eBooks are part of the greater cultural cornerstone of literacy, education, and information access.

Digital Rights Management (DRM), like a tariff, acts as a mechanism to inhibit this free exchange of ideas, literature, and information. Likewise, the current licensing arrangements mean that readers never possess ultimate control over their own personal reading material. These are not acceptable conditions for eBooks.

I am a reader. As a customer, I am entitled to be treated with respect and not as a potential criminal. As a consumer, I am entitled to make my own decisions about the eBooks that I buy or borrow.

I am concerned about the future of access to literature and information in eBooks.  I ask readers, authors, publishers, retailers, librarians, software developers, and device manufacturers to support these eBook users’ rights.

These rights are yours.  Now it is your turn to take a stand.  To help spread the word, copy this entire post, add your own comments, remix it, and distribute it to others.  Blog it, Tweet it (#ebookrights), Facebook it, email it, and post it on a telephone pole.

To the extent possible under law, the person who associated CC0 with this work has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this work

http://newsinfo.nd.edu/news/16512-notre-dame-launches-ereader-study-creates-first-paperless-course/

Having concluded that state librarians needn’t worry about eReader devices, the report goes on to suggest many ideas that state libraries and others should consider in efforts to grow and improve eBook services in public libraries. More needs to be done to improve library purchasing power through consortia purchasing and similar strategies. New technologies like the Internet Archive’s BookServer ought to be explored as a way for library users to more easily discover the services that are available. The certification of eReaders for library use should be pursued with participation by public librarians. Research is needed to demonstrate to skeptical publishers that library ebook services are not a threat to their bottom line, but in fact will help their bottom line.  Public libraries should be champions of self-publishing and should feature self-published books in their eBook offerings. Libraries need to foster greater awareness and conversation about copyright and fair use issues that might threaten their eBook services. And as traditional printed book lending shifts more and more to downloadable eBooks, libraries should take advantage of the opportunity to repurpose their space and experiment with new services.

The COSLA eReader Task Force was led by Oregon State Librarian Jim Scheppke. Other members were California State Librarian Stacey Aldrich, Kansas State Librarian Jo Budler, and Massachusetts State Librarian, Rob Maier. They worked with Eva Miller of Pinpoint Logic, a Portland-based research and design consulting firm, and Tom Peters of TAP Information Services, and Kansas-based library consulting firm.

Copies of the report are available for download on the COSLA website: www.COSLA.org or directly through http://www.cosla.org/documents/COSLA2270_Report_Final1.pdf.

COSLA is an independent organization of the chief officers of state and territorial agencies designated as the state library administrative agency and responsible for statewide library development. COSLA’s mission is to identify issues of common concern and national interest, to further state library agency relationships with the federal government and national organizations, and to initiate, maintain and support cooperative action for the improvement of library services. COSLA offers to its membership mutual support and the opportunity through group action to influence federal policy and national organizations. COSLA promotes its leadership role in the library community and with other organizations of state officials in order to affect policy of importance to library and information delivery. COSLA is a dynamic diverse organization, which encourages open discussion of issues.

Of interest is the eReader Comparison Chart which WNYLRC has posted to their website as follows (PDF format):

Price Wars:

Amazon Drops Kindle Price to $189
New York Times Bits
Reacting to Barnes & Noble’s price cut on the Nook on Monday morning, Amazon.com has just dropped the price of its Kindle e-reader to $189, from $259… Read More

Border Fights E-Reader War with Kobo, Gift Card

PC Magazine

Borders, however, insisted that its own gift card offer was unrelated to the Kindle and Nook price wars. “Borders didn’t feel compelled to dive into the … Read More

Borders Enters the E-Reader Price Fray

Wall Street Journal (blog)

… of its Nook e-reader to $199 and introduced a version without 3G cellphone-network capabilities for $149; Amazon cut the price of the Kindle to $189. … Read More

New Mobile Apps:

eBook War Continue: Borders Launches Apps for iPad, iPhone Gotta Be Mobile (blog)

Yesterday we saw the great price drop for the Amazon Kindle and the Nook. Today we’re seeing Borders announce the availability of its eBook reading app for … Read More

The survey was conducted as part of HighWire’s ongoing exploration of the fast-growing scholarly ebook market. The results and accompanying analysis draw together the input of 138 librarians from 13 countries. The responses underscore the significant growth librarians expect in ebook acquisitions and point to their current preferences and possible trends in this evolving area.

The survey data was analyzed by Michael Newman, Stanford University’s Head Biology Librarian, and the report presents his perspective on what his librarian colleagues had to say about ebooks. The report espouses some familiar and consistent themes:

• Simplicity and ease of use seem more important than sophisticated end-user features.
• Users tend to discover ebooks through both the library catalog and search engines.
• While users prefer PDFs, format preference will likely change as technology changes.
• DRM seems to hinder ebook use for library patrons; ability to print is essential.
• The most popular business model for librarians is purchase with perpetual access.

The full press release is availbale online at: http://highwire.stanford.edu/PR/PR_HWeBookSurveyResults_4Mar10.pdf