ABSTRACT
On 28 June 2012 the Swedish Library Association published a full page ad in one of the country's largest newspaper, Dagens Nyheter, where an elderly man in a three-piece suit is looking sternly at the reader under the heading ‘Say hello to your new librarian’. The ad declares that ‘There is a silent revolution going on in our public libraries. Not long ago, libraries were independent. Free to select, buy and recommend literature and factual books from amongst all the books that were in print. Then came the e-book’. The Library Association criticises the publishers’ strict control over the distribution of e-books, particularly their refusal to release new titles to the libraries and their rigid price policies. The ad states that while the e-book is a wonderful opportunity for libraries, it is both an opportunity and a threat for publishers: ‘E-books are potential cash cows – provided that the threat of libraries’ independent choices and purchases are eliminated’. Here the libraries’ aim to freely and publicly disseminate culture and knowledge is in contrast to the commercial interests of the publishers who threaten to take control over the libraries: ‘Your new librarian likes money more than books and owns a large publishing company’ (Svensk Biblioteksförening, 2012).
