The press conference of the Presidential Library at the RIA Novosti agency

24 November 2011 in the regional media center of the RIA Novosti was held a press conference on the subject of “Electronic book: modern technology and book industry”. Representatives of book stores, publishers and experts of the Presidential Library expressed their views about the future of the e-book to journalists.

The terms of reference included the problems of book publishing: what impact does e-book have on publishing, how to protect electronic editions from illegal distribution, can the e-book make reading popular again?

On the eve of the press conference the Presidential Library supported by the RIA Novosti prepared the interview with Boris Strugatsky. In answer to the question whether the e-book will compete with the traditional one, the author noted: “The advantages of the e-book are obvious: a fantastic compactness, unlimited possibilities of illustration (moving illustrations; controllable illustrations; author’s illustrations). My own experience (insignificant though) of use of the e-book tells me that it has already won the competition”.

According to a press conference participant, the head of the Symposium publishing house A. K. Kononov, distribution of e-book in modern conditions threatens the publishing business. The book gradually frees itself from the material carrier and this process is irreversible. That is why, stressed A. K. Kononov, publishers face an urgent problem of protecting the e-book from illegal distribution in Internet where about 90% of today’s literature is offered with copyright infringement.

The discussions treated with the role of e-book in modern education and the place of e-library in the modern world.

The Presidential Library Director General Deputy for Information Resources E. Zhabko told journalist about current educational projects of the library created on the basis its own electronic holdings, as well as about the way the library searches for new forms of work using the e-book.

The largest educational project is the Annual All-Russian Olympiad for students “Russia in electronic world”. In order to successfully accomplish the tasks of the Olympiad the contestants should browse the books featured at the library’s portal in the Textbooks on Russian history section.

17 November 2011 the Presidential Library opened the lecture hall where the representatives of the Russian leading academic and educational institutions will deliver lectures on the library’s subject are. The video records of the lectures will be available at the Presidential Library’s portal.

The press conference was organized following the results of the round table “Electronic book: modern technology and book industry” held in the Presidential Library November 18, 2011.