Access to e-books in the libraries of the city of Zagreb

Electronic publishing has been developing for almost 20 years (Meyers, B. Electronic publishing: a brief history and some current activities, 2006). An electronic book consists of one or several files available to the public online, on CD-ROM, diskette or the like physical carriers. In addition to text it may include images and sound, links to related online pages and programs to change and supplement it” (Živković, D. The electronic book, 2005). The production of e-books in Croatia started as early as 1993 and it has increased since then. As many as 16 commercial electronic publishers were registered in Croatia in 2005 (Fabris, M. Electronic publishing in Croatia, 2007). In addition to their products there are also numerous foreign e-books available on the book market. The aim of the research has been to show the access to e-books in the libraries in the City of Zagreb (Croatia), either published in physical form in Croatia or abroad. The research was carried out by polling and benchmarking methods in 7 libraries: 4 public libraries from network of Zagreb City Libraries - Bogdan Ogrizović Library, City Library, Medveščak Library, Ravnice Library and 3 libraries of foreign cultural institutes - Goethe Institute Library, Italian Cultural Institute Library and French Institute Library. The acquisition of e-books started as early as 1995 in the City Library. In 4 libraries (57%) e-books are read on site and in 3 libraries (43%) they are lent outside library premises. Annual acquisition ranges from 6 to 30 e-books per library. The hypothesis of the research that e-books in physical form are increasingly acquired and used in the libraries in the City of Zagreb has been confirmed. This poster should for the first time give an insight into the access to e-books in the libraries in the City of Zagreb. It contributes to the discussion on freedom of access to information in digital environment as the usage of e-books is based on licensing principles.