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In what has become a crowded digital conference circuit, Digital Book World seems to have solidified its importance to the industry with an impressive turnout.

ALA's 3rd supplement on ebooks and digital content now available May 24th, 2013 · by spolanka · No Comments The third supplement on ebooks and digital content from American Libraries examines both the big picture and the nitty-gritty of libraries and publishing, looking at how libraries are evolving in response to the digital revolution, from taking advantage of opportunities in content creation to advocating for equitable access to ebooks produced by the world's largest book publishers.

From Meredith "Another interesting article to share about the digital divide in America. What I thought was interesting in this wasn't that there was a gap in technology tools but that there is a gap in technology support once those tools/gadgets arrive at the school."

Very interesting article. Though internet access can be a huge problem in rural areas, this article didn't mention its rather large costs. Often times, rural areas pay significantly more for internet than in a city. For some of these kids the problem is not just having the phone company improve access, but the cost of it, too.

Challenges, as well as opportunities, for curation in the digital age.

I think this is an excellent read on the rapid speed of the digital divide. Written about England, but applies everywhere.

Spotted by Meredith.

"I would love to go [home] with the Kindle during the holidays." This brings into mind the joy in the winter spent here in the states on Christmas with my family and electronic gizmos. With the day to day hustle we sometimes forget about the "have nots." This young man Eperence Uwera, a 13-year-old student is thankful for what some take for granted as just another toy for fun. The poignant thought of this article is that the digital the divide is hampering growth in poor or remote areas globally. An E-Book Revolution for Africa? duly notes that Amazon is lending a hand to bridge the digital gap in Africa, also prompting technological literacy; if there is such a term. The problem raised in this article is that programs such as Worldreader sometimes get neglected, because of maintenance delays or high overhead cost to keep operations afloat in poverty stricken areas. This program brings hope to the less fortune children of African to see the wealth of knowledge gained from ePub. Quickly disseminated information at 1,000 young minds access gives a decent outlook for Africa's future. Though the program touches a small fraction, the fact is this Kindle program is tripling the libraries of these impoverished provinces; and is a milestone for further development. Hopefully, Worldreader and programs like it can be sustained through the digital era and beyond. Publishing can change the world!!!

Is open access a solution for bridging the digital divide? Many people think so.

Read the original article by Darnton first and then also see the full text of Courant reply on his blog at http://paulcourant.net/2009/02/04/google-robert-darnton-and-the-digital-republic-of-letters/

iPublishCentral, a self-service digital content publishing, marketing, warehousing and distribution platform, will allow participating AAUP members to market books on the Internet, sell content online, and promote brands and titles across the Web. Among the three core components of iPublishCentral are market, distribute and deliver.

Michael Zimmer's blog discusses the Google Book Search. This particular post is authored by SOIS PhD student Jeremy Mauger. (For more information, make sure to check out the related links at the end of the article.)

More digital demand, less funding

Update: This post is part of a series. If you find this topic interesting, I recommend you read the two follow-ups as well: Apple has built its iBooks platform on the back of an open standard. With last week's introduction of iBooks 2.0 and the free iBooks Author software for Mac OS X, Apple is deliberately locking out that popular open standard.

In response to discussions with writers groups regarding contract terms for their new digital imprints, Random House is adjusting proposed terms for authors with Hydra, Alibi, Loveswept, and Flirt.

The argument between the author of a best-selling memoir and his publisher over the amount of royalties he was owed from sales of the digital editions of his work, has led to the author not only leaving the publisher, but going on to set up a new publishing house for himself and calling on other writers to join him.

The Wylie agency signed a deal to exclusively distribute e-books of its authors through Amazon. Want to read Philip Roth, Dave Eggers, Saul Bellow in digital form?  Better get a Kindle. 

Last week, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed replacing school textbooks with e-books in order to help plug a state budget gap. Now, textbook giant Pearson has responded with digital content to supplement California's programs in biology, chemistry, algebra 2, and geometry.