Technology Report - Amazon Launches E-Book Lending for Libraries
科技报道 - 亚马逊推出Kindle图书借阅服务
This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道。
Amazon.com launched its Kindle library-lending service in the United States last week. Millions of users of the Kindle reader and app can now borrow Kindle books from their local public library.
上周，亚马逊在美国推出了Kindle图书借阅服务。数百万Kindle阅读器及程序的用户可以从当地的公共图书馆借阅Kindle电子书。
注：Kindle是亚马逊推出的电子书阅读器。
The company is working with OverDrive, a leading supplier of e-books and other digital content to libraries. The service will be available through the websites of more than eleven thousand local libraries across the country.
该公司正与一家名为OverDrive，向图书馆提供电子书和其它数字内容的领先供应商合作。这项服务将通过全国超过1100家当地公共图书馆的网站来提供。
Users of other devices including the Barnes and Noble Nook and Sony Reader have already been able to borrow library books. Experts say Amazon's entry is likely to reopen a debate between publishers and libraries over e-book lending.
包括Barnes and Noble的Nook阅读器以及索尼阅读器在内的其它设备的用户早已能够借阅图书馆书籍。专家表示，亚马逊的加入可能重新引发出版商和图书馆对电子书借阅的争论。
注：Barnes and Noble是美国最大的实体书店，也是仅次于亚马逊的第2大网上书店。
Bill Rosenblatt is president of Giant Steps Media Technology Strategies, a consulting company.
比尔·罗森布拉特（Bill Rosenblatt）是一家名为Giant Steps Media Technology Strategies的咨询公司的总裁。
BILL ROSENBLATT: “Publishers and libraries are enemies that occur in nature like snakes and monkeys. Libraries would like to be able to make books available to everyone, all the time, with no limitations. And publishers, of course, would like to sell more books to the public.”
罗森布拉特：“出版商和图书馆的敌对关系就像自然界中的蛇和猴子。图书馆希望能够在任何时间，无任何限制地把书籍提供给所有人。而出版商当然希望向公众出售更多书籍。”
Mr. Rosenblatt says the debate in the United States centers on what is known as the law of first sale.
罗森布拉特先生表示，美国的争论主要聚焦于所谓的首次出售法则。
BILL ROSENBLATT: “Once you buy any kind of media product such as a book or a CD or a DVD or anything like that, you can do whatever you want with it. You can read it, you can give it away, you can lend it, you can resell it, you can burn it, you can use it as a Frisbee -- whatever you want. This law is referred to as 'first sale.'"
罗森布拉特：“一旦你购买了任何一种媒体产品，如书籍、CD、DVD或其它类似的东西，你就可以随意处置。你可以阅读，可以转送，可以出借，可以转售，可以刻录，也可以把它当成飞碟--一切随你所想。这一法则就是所谓的‘首次销售法则’。”
This law is what permits libraries to lend books over and over again without having to pay publishers each time. But Bill Rosenblatt points out that it does not include digital products. Technology known as digital rights management can make e-books unreadable once they have reached a certain time or user limit.
这一法则允许图书馆可以不断重复出借书籍而不用再给出版商掏钱。但罗森布拉特指出，这不包括数码产品。数字版权管理技术可以使电子图书在达到一定期限或使用限制后失效。
BILL ROSENBLATT: “Several months ago, one of the major publishers, Harper Collins, which is a division of News Corp, announced that they were only going to allow e-books to be lent out twenty-six times, and then they would have to be purchased by the libraries again. Apart from HarperCollins, publishers are allowing libraries to purchase e-books for lending in perpetuity, meaning as many times as anyone wants to borrow them.”
罗森布拉特：“几个月前，新闻集团下属部门，主要出版商之一的哈珀柯林斯出版社（Harper Collins）宣布他们将只允许电子图书被借阅26次，随后图书馆必须重新购买。除了哈珀柯林斯出版社，其它出版商允许图书馆购买电子书永久性出借，也就是对借阅不做限制。”
HarperCollins says it took the action to protect the growing e-book industry and its own book sales. But Bill Rosenblatt says critics did not see it that way.
哈珀柯林斯出版社表示，他们采取这一行动是为了保护日益增长的电子书产业和自身的图书销售。但罗森布拉特表示，批评人士可不这么看。
BILL ROSENBLATT: “Because a digital book lasts forever, as long as it’s stored somewhere in digital form, that it should be lendable forever, and that this business of restricting e-book lending to twenty-six times is sort of an unfair, artificial limitation that shouldn’t apply because it’s a digital product.”
罗森布拉特：“因为数字图书以数字化形式保存到某处后就可以永存，它应该可以永久性借阅。而该企业限制电子书只能出借26次是一种不公平的人为限制。”
He says the debate over e-book lending will likely end up in court.
A Harris Interactive survey this month found that fifteen percent of Americans now use some sort of electronic reader. It was eight percent just a year ago.
And that's the VOA Special English Technology Report, written by June Simms. I'm Steve Ember. |