Librarians Across the Globe Will Shape the Future of eBook Lending at Cleveland Event

CLEVELAND, OH--(Marketwired - Aug 5, 2015) - As Donald Trump, Scott Walker, Jeb Bush and the other Republican candidates take the stage Thursday to talk about the nation's future in Cleveland, librarians from all over the world will be developing plans to enhance the future of their communities just a few blocks away. Addressing similar social issues including improving literacy and advancing community engagement, nearly 500 library "delegates" from 38 states and four countries will come together with publishing executives at OverDrive's international user group conference, Digipalooza (www.digipalooza.com). The event is being held August 5-7 at the Cleveland Convention Center. 

With eBooks accounting for 30 percent of U.S. adult book sales (according to the Association of American Publishers), readers are also taking advantage of the eBook technology and popular catalog availability at their local library. Through July 2015, public library patrons have borrowed 94.7 million eBooks and audiobooks, a 24 percent increase over the same period in 2014. As a result, the library channel represents dramatic growth in revenue for publishers and discoverability for authors. From homework help to New York Times Bestsellers, libraries and schools now have the digital resources to improve literacy skills in their communities through the circulation of eBooks, audiobooks and other digital media. Serving 34,000 institutions worldwide, including 91 percent of public libraries in the United States, OverDrive has enabled schools and libraries to promote the new forms of digital reading since 2003.

Sari Feldman, President of the American Library Association and Executive Director of the Cuyahoga County Public Library, will kick off Digipalooza and present the new campaign for Libraries Transform (librariestransform.org). 16-time New York Times bestselling author Jane Green (janegreen.com) will provide the keynote address. Digipalooza is a unique educational and networking conference that addresses the massive surge in library eBook and audiobook borrowing with panels on industry trends, best practices, marketing and outreach, and upcoming enhancements to the OverDrive (www.overdrive.com) service. Conference Partners for Digipalooza include: Penguin Random House, HarperCollins Publishers, Baker Publishing Group, Blackstone Audio and Books on Tape.

For more information and for media passes, please contact David Burleigh at dburleigh@overdrive.com.

About OverDrive
OverDrive is the leading global digital distribution platform, supplying the industry's largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks, periodicals and streaming video to 34,000 libraries, schools and retailers worldwide. We support all major computers and devices, including iPhone®, iPad®, Nook®, Android™ phones and tablets, Chromebook™, and Kindle® (U.S. only). OverDrive offers all digital media on a single platform, and offers APIs to streamline a seamless user experience. OverDrive Read, the breakthrough EPUB and HTML5 browser-based reading experience, now supports fixed layout and narrated eBooks. Founded in 1986, OverDrive is based in Cleveland, Ohio USA. www.overdrive.com