In attendance: Mary Danko, Wendy Hysko, Stephanie Chase, Lucinda Walker
Via – Go to Meeting
The meeting was called to order at 11:05 a.m.
1. Overdrive Update
a. Original Content
Mary Danko has been working with the Center for Cartoon Studies on a project to deliver original ebook content. The ListenUp! Vermont website has placed called , “Community Reserve” (on the left-hand side of the page). Overdrive gives us a limited amount of space to host community-related items. Work from students at the Center for Cartoon Studies will be featured in this section. Mary has also been in contact with the VT Folklife Center about uploading some of their MP3 files.
b. Overdrive’s WIN program – If patrons purchase ebooks or audiobooks from the vendors featured on the LUV website, a portion of those sales is deposited into our Overdrive account. We can spend that money on more content. We will do more to publicize this.
c. Our Overdrive fees have gone done. This additional money will go towards purchasing more content. We will be surveying our member libraries at the May annual meeting as to their ideas for improving Overdrive’s services.
d. Brilliance (owned by Amazon) has pulled out of Overdrive’s audio program. Penguin is also pulling out (for audios.)
2. SCOOP Update
Ads aimed at vendors interested in working with SCOOP will appear in Library Hotline (2/13), Library Journal (2/15) and School Library Journal (3/1)
3. Donation card for patrons
We are investigating getting a “Donate Now” button embedded into our LUV website.
4. VOKAL Update
Wendy reported that 32 libraries are now part of the VOKAL catalog. There are just 8 slots open until 2014. There will be no library migrations over the summer, but there is one slot left for this spring. The DOL asked the VOKAL implementation team to do a daylong course on KOHA next fall. The workshop is slated for 10/26/2012. VOKAL is looking for people interested in serving on the implementation team. VOKAL members are encouraged to use the mailing list to ask questions.
5. Finance Update – every thing related to billing is going smoothly. Mango bills were just sent out.
6. Website update – tabled
7. Kindle privacy statement – tabled.
8. Mary is meeting again with the folks from 3M to discuss their cloud ebook program.
9. Increased need for ebook content – We are trying to beef up the ebook collection. A hurdle we face is the wide variety of prices for ebooks ($10 – $50 per title.) It was felt that we needed to better educate our member libraries so that they may better educate their patrons.
10. Lucinda will be teaching a class on ebooks on March 29, 2012 at Midstate Library.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:10 PM.