BiblioTech

Bexar County in Texas plans “to open one of the nation’s first entirely digital public libraries,” reports Miguel Bustillo in The Wall Street Journal (2/7/13). The expectation is that the lower costs of operating a digital-only library will enable the county “to serve residents in unincorporated areas with scant library coverage.” The facility, known as BiblioTech, “will have a selection of about 10,000 titles, and 150 e-readers for patrons to check out” in addition to “25 laptops and 25 tablets for use on site, as well as 50 desktop computers. It will also have its own coffee house.”

The total cost is expected to run about $1.5 million, which is “lower than running traditional libraries.” However, the cost of providing certain e-titles is significantly higher than for printed books. For example, “bestseller ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ costs $47.85 from two leading providers of e-books for libraries … compared with $9.57 for the same book in print.” This is partly “because publishers concerned about losing print sales are wary of making new titles available to libraries in e-book form, and charge libraries more for digital versions that can be loaned out.”

That many patrons “still expect books on paper” is another obstacle. “Our experience shows that demand for printed books continues to exist and is in fact growing,” says Ramiro Salazar, director of the San Antonio Public Library. However, Nelson Wolff, Bexar County’s top elected official, says that “technology is changing too fast to make investing in print wise." Says Nelson: “I am a guy who likes that physical book in his hand … But I also realize I am a bit of a fossil.” He adds: “It’s not going to be everything you find in a traditional library, but we think this is a cost-effective way to bring more books to people.”