Kindle Library Lending Gets Off to Bumpy Start
Kindle’s library-lending program sparked a wave of confusion when it launched nationwide this week.
Amazon said customers would be able to borrow Kindle books from more than 11,000 local libraries across the country.
However, according to Publishers Lunch, library ebook service provider OverDrive didn’t have all of its library customers activated at the start of Monday’s rollout.
On its blog, the company said it was “quickly updating all US public and school library partner websites to support Kindle compatibility and will complete this update as soon as possible.”
Meantime, some publishers have questions about how Kindle’s library lending program will impact them. They told Publishers Lunch that they were not asked to consent to the Kindle library program when it was announced in April.
Up until now, OverDrive has lent library ebooks using their own servers, however, Kindle lending will operate through Amazon’s servers.
