The Chicago Distribution Center

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March 23, 2009

Distributing E-Content: Digital Editions from Bibliovault and the Chicago Distribution Center

BiblioVault and the Chicago Distribution Center are pleased to announce a new solution for non-profit publishers wishing to distribute e-content.

We've added Adobe's Digital Editions/Content Server 4 to our fulfillment options for member presses--it's software that can digitally protect PDFs and reflowable EPUB ebooks. (http://www.adobe.com/products/digitaleditions/)

Among Digital Editions' advantages are:

-- an excellent user interface (similar in look and feel to Adobe Reader),

-- the ability for a press to control access time (sell for an unlimited time or lend for a specified time), and

-- a comprehensive digital rights management (DRM) package that allows for controls of the quality and amount of text that can be printed, the amount of text that can be copied, and the number of devices on which the content can be accessed.

All other familiar features that add value to e-content, such as bookmarking, searching, and changing type size, are also available in Digital Editions ebooks.

How Your Press Can Sell eBooks With Digital Editions

Presses that use the CDC cart and have web-ready PDFs in BiblioVault:
You can set up ebooks for sale in your cart just as you do physical books.

Presses that use other carts and have web-ready PDFs in BiblioVault:
If your independent cart can make a secure call to BiblioVault's servers, we can probably fulfill your ebook sales. (Get in touch with bv-help@uchicago.edu for details.)

Once a user has successfully completed the purchase of an ebook in your cart, your cart passes them a link to download the book. If the user doesn't already have Digital Editions installed on their computer, Adobe's site initiates a download and then opens the file they purchased. After the user has successfully opened their book the first time, they no longer need to be online to view the book. If they purchased the book for a limited period, the file will not open after the end of the period.

How You Can Replace Comp Copies With Digital Editions eBooks

Presses can also use Digital Editions to send out ebooks as text exam copies, review copies, or any other complimentary copies. New tools on the BiblioVault website pages allow presses to generate links to individual books as needed or email out many links at once. With the elimination of unit and shipping costs, presses will be able to realize substantial savings and provide a "green" alternative that might appeal to users.

For more information about this program, please email bv-help@uchicago.edu.

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About BiblioVault:

BiblioVault helps scholarly publishers preserve and extend the value of their books, providing long-term secure storage of digital book files for member presses, as well as a wide range of scanning, printing, transfer, conversion, and distribution services.

About the Chicago Distribution Center:

A division of Chicago Distribution Services, the Chicago Distribution Center (CDC) is a state-of-the-art distribution and fulfillment operation, providing a full range of services to its client publishers and its customers worldwide. The CDC houses the Chicago Digital Distribution Center, which provides short-run digital printing.

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