PRESS RELEASES
FREE DOWNLOADABLE AUDIO BOOK SERVICE NOW AVAILABLE 24/7 THROUGH BUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
~ Commuters, Teens, Busy Parents Can Enjoy Great Titles Anytime, Anywhere ~
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Buffalo , NY -- Enjoy listening to the latest best-seller in the car on the way to work? Want to entice a tech-savy teen to keep up with reading assignments? Interested in fitting the trendy nonfiction title into your day? The Buffalo and Erie County Public Library (B&ECP) System's new downloadable audio book service, available at http://overdrive.buffalolib.org , is for you!
The service allows B&ECPL patrons with a valid library card to download audio books to their personal computers for free. The selections may then be enjoyed on the PC or transferred to a personal MP3 player. If publisher licensing permits, some titles may also be burned directly to CD for listening in the car or on portable players. The Library's collection currently contains more than 425 different titles, including a combination of fiction and nonfiction best-sellers, classics and popular authors. The fiction category includes mystery and suspense, young adult and juvenile, classics, romance and science fiction. Nonfiction titles are available in biography, business and careers, religion and spirituality and self-improvement. New selections will be ordered each month, and will include titles placed on local school reading lists.
“We want all members of our community to find the library's resources accessible and convenient,” said B&ECPL Director Michael C. Mahaney . “In today's society, this involves reaching out beyond traditional library buildings. The downloadable audio book service is another way to bring reading and the library back to commuters, teens, busy parents and homebound individuals.”
“During an unadvertised trial period, the service was already incredibly well-received with hundreds of titles downloaded over the first ten days,” added Mahaney.
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To check out materials, patrons browse the collection at http://overdrive.buffalolib.org, select a title and enter a valid library card number to download the digital book. Late fees never accrue with this service. At the end of the seven-day loan period, titles will expire and be automatically “returned” to the library for others to enjoy. If an item is currently checked out, patrons may place a request for no charge and will be able to see how many people are currently waiting for the title. The individual is notified by e-mail when the audio book is available for download. In addition, many titles are always available, featuring unlimited, simultaneous use.
After a $7 million budget cut in 2005 and a static budget in 2006, the Erie County Legislature voted to adopt a 2007 County budget that provided $500,000 in additional support to the B&ECPL.
“Not only did this funding enable all locations to meet State minimum standards for open hours and improve programming at certain facilities, but provides the opportunity to purchase a wider, more comprehensive collection, including the new downloadable audio books, for the benefit of our community members,” said Mahaney. “We thank the Legislature for its support.”
The technology to offer the downloadable audio book service is provided by OverDrive, Inc., based in Cleveland, Ohio.
For more details about this service, visit http://overdrive.buffalolib.org.