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Originally Posted by MGlitch
Why should anyone be required to sell anything to anyone? Morally sure, legally no.
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If I am to take this literally, you are an extreme libertarian. We would have to discuss that in the political section.
As for books, I think I can just trot out the classic
freedom to read in support of democracy mantra. It may be that there are a few countries so affluent that few people need public libraries for extended exposure to the widest range of viewpoints, but most of the world is not like that.
As for the eBook role here, eReader prices haven't gone down as fast as I thought they would, so that they might become a preferred reading tool for lower imcome people worldwide. Bit it will come as eInks patents expire.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MGlitch
Especially when that someone is going to turn around and redistribute copies for free, albeit in an altered medium.
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The Maryland law only concerns titles available electronically. There are so few more or less current narrative books still unavailable electonically that I don't see a big freedom to read issue with undigitized books.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MGlitch
Also, libraries buy from publishers, it's not terribly difficult for publishers to seriously diminish or eliminate a libraries ability to buy their books.
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Thus the issue.