books to ebooks

the future of reading is digital

The 5 years EC project ends - the EOD service continues

The eBooks on Demand (EOD) project has resulted in many developments of the EOD digitisation service. The EOD service will continue to be offered by the self-sustaining network of 37 libraries across Europe.

 

The highlights of the project include: launch of the EOD search engine (http://search.books2ebooks.eu), currently in collaboration with 30 libraries who expose their digitised materials and items offered for digitisation; 18 libraries offering reprints in addition to e-books; and developments of the ordering data management system which simplifies the work for library operators, gives now additional opportunities for the users and leads to transparent customer communication. Also 5 international conferences have been organised within the Culture Programme supported project.

 

Since the beginning of the EOD service in 2006, about 10 000 books with nearly 2 million pages have been digitised and delivered, and 800 reprints created on demand. The network of libraries who offer the EOD service has enlarged from 13 libraries in 8 countries to 37 libraries in 12 countries.

 

Silvia Gstrein, the EOD Project Coordinator looks back: “It has been fascinating to see how a digitisation departments-centered trial has grown to a day-to-day service integrated into all kinds of workflows of the libraries”. Speaking about the future she continues: “There is room for improvement of the service and discoverability of the items, implementation of new features, and extending the range of the literature offered for digitisation”.

 

The EOD service was launched by 13 libraries in 8 European countries in 2006 as an initiative by the University and Regional Library of Tyrol (University of Innsbruck), who will continue to maintain the EOD network. The EOD project ran from 1 May 2009 to 30 April 2014 with the cooperation of 20 partners being co-financed by the Culture Programme of the European Commission.