Google and On Demand Books (ODB), the maker of the Espresso Book Machine® (EBM), have signed a deal to provide print-on-demand (PoD) access to more than two million public-domain titles (published before 1923) in the Google digital files.
The deal also presages potential PoD access to millions more in-copyright “orphan works” should the Google Book Search settlement be approved.
The EBM, which its makers call “an ATM for books,” is already located at several bookstores and libraries. This deal likely heralds demand for more of the machines, which cost about $100,000 (according to the AP) but also can be leased. ...
The AP reports a recommended $8 price, with a dollar from each sale going to ODB and a dollar to Google, which will donate that commission to “charities and other nonprofit causes.” ...
EBM users can already access more than one million public-domain books through the Open Content Alliance (OCA) and additional titles via various publishers, and numerous individual publishers. ...
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
