Quote:
Originally Posted by ownedbycats
The issue is that a decent chunk of these books are out-of-print and not available digitally, and authors/publishers have no interest in re-publishing them as an eBook.
|
Which is their right.
The same issue came up with "orphan" books during tbe Google/AG landgrab and the court shut it down. The French tried forced licensing and got serious pushback. Not sure where their opt-out system ended up.
Wanting does not justify taking.
And the essence of copyright is choosing when and how to publish or not publish and how.
Many authors and publisher are terrified of digital because they see piracy under every rock. It took years for Sony and Scholastic to convince Rowling ebooks were actually safe. Many others still refuse.
Places like the Internet Archive's self-licensing "library" only reinforce those (normally unfounded) fears.
They.Are.Not.Helping.
Instead, they are delaying the legal availability.