The American Library Association yesterday took a position for the first time in response to HarperCollins' new library ebook licensing restrictions, saying "As libraries cope with stagnant or decreased budgets, the recent decision by publisher HarperCollins to restrict the lending of e-books to a limited number of circulations per copy threatens libraries' ability to provide their users with access to information."
There is validity to both sides of the argument - from the publishers' point of view, if they were to sell a print book to a library that book would eventually wear out and need to be replaced, but an ebook could potentially be lent forever thus undermining book sales. From the library's point of view, they argue that Harper Collins' limit of 26 usages is too low and that putting a restriction on usage will limit the adoption of ebooks into libraries. For more on this topic see the New York Times article linked below.
There is validity to both sides of the argument - from the publishers' point of view, if they were to sell a print book to a library that book would eventually wear out and need to be replaced, but an ebook could potentially be lent forever thus undermining book sales. From the library's point of view, they argue that Harper Collins' limit of 26 usages is too low and that putting a restriction on usage will limit the adoption of ebooks into libraries. For more on this topic see the New York Times article linked below.