Ask A Librarian: What About Controlled Digital Lending?

From a friend: Please explain to me your enthusiasm for controlled digital lending. Please let me know what you think are potential drawbacks and downsides

Well I think some of it starts with the fact that it is the process that Open Library (where I used to work) uses, so I’ve seen it in action and it works.

In short it basically allows a library to take a book in their collection, digitize it, and lend it as if it were a paper book (presuming, of course, that they are lending out the...