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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Executive
Director
Nicholas Bogaty
(212)
924-9081
www.openebook.org
Open an eBook…Discover New Worlds
of Reading
Electronic Publishing Industry Launches Global Campaign To Educate Public on
Benefits of eBooks
First Ever eBook Consumer Advocacy
Program Debuts May 1
New York, NY 4/27/2002 –
Educating consumers on the benefits of electronic
books, the Open eBook Forum announces the launch of its worldwide public
awareness campaign, "Open an eBook...Discover New Worlds of
Reading,” [www.openanebook.org].
The eBook industry trade and standards association, the non-profit Open eBook
Forum has designed the campaign to highlight how eBook technologies and products
promote literacy, provide access to books for those with reading disabilities,
and have enhanced educational opportunities. The campaign launches on May 1,
with extensive promotions from Open eBook Forum members, such as
Microsoft Corporation, Adobe Systems, Random House, and McGraw-Hill; free book
downloads from the top publishers available at openanebook.org; and a major
media outreach.
"This is the grand re-opening of the eBook industry," said Open eBook Forum
executive director Nicholas Bogaty. "eBooks are enjoying global success in the
classroom, in the business community, with travelers, and the vision impaired.
In fact, sales of eBooks increased by 40% in
2001 over the previous year. We're launching
this campaign to invite people to come to our site, and ‘Open an eBook’ for free
to see just how satisfying it can be to carry titles on New York Times
Best-Seller list in their breast pocket or access new reading material from the
comfort of their living room."
In
addition to the convenience of eBooks, the campaign is also designed to promote
the enormous benefits of electronic publication for educators and the disabled.
Noteworthy for their ease of distribution to students, strong search
capabilities and myriad resources for the learning and sight disabled, eBooks
are emerging as an increasingly logical alternative to traditional books.
George Kerscher, senior
officer, accessible information at Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, and
chairman of the Open eBook Forum board of directors, is a strong advocate
for eBooks as a tool to open access to persons who are visually impaired or
learning disabled. Himself blind, Kerscher notes that, “eBooks provide both the
ability to enlarge the print for readers with low vision as well as have the
eBook read the title aloud using text-to-speech software. eBooks open up an
entirely new world of reading that was once severely restricted to persons who
are visually or learning disabled.”
Electronic books have also won praise for their role in helping to advance
literacy in an educational setting. Judy
Golden, president of Operation Outreach-USA, a non-profit organization that
promotes the development of literacy and character in elementary school
children, praises eBooks for their accessibility. Golden explains, “We are able
to reach greater numbers of students far more economically, with some important
technical applications in the classroom. Beyond the economic benefits, eBook
tools such as the built-in language translator prove to be a valuable asset in
many schools. Every child in America should be able to reap the rewards of
reading; eBooks can help that cause immensely.”
The
Open an eBook…Discover New Worlds of Reading campaign launches on May 1
as a precursor to New York’s BookExpo America online at
www.openanebook.org and at an event in Manhattan. The launch party will
showcase new electronic devices from major technology companies such as Palm,
Microsoft and Franklin; and include talks by educators and leading book industry
proponents of electronic publishing.
About the OeBF
The Open eBook Forum,
www.openebook.org,
is an international non-profit trade and standards organization for the
electronic book publishing industry. Gold Sponsoring Members include technology
leaders Microsoft Corporation, Adobe Systems, Palm Digital Media and OverDrive,
Inc.
Members include leading
publishing companies such as Random House, Simon & Schuster, AOL Time Warner
Book Group, McGraw-Hill, HarperCollins and Reed Elsevier; and educational and
government agencies including the Library of Congress, American Foundation for
the Blind and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
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