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  3. Like a tired marriage, the relationship between libraries and publishers has long been reassuringly dull. E-books, however, are

Like a tired marriage, the relationship between libraries and publishers has long been reassuringly dull. E-books, however, are

admin2014-06-30  103
问题     Like a tired marriage, the relationship between libraries and publishers has long been reassuringly dull. E-books, however, are causing heartache. Libraries know they need digital wares if they are to remain relevant, but many publishers are too careful about piracy and lost sales to co-operate. Among the big six, only Random House and HarperCollins license e-books with most libraries. The others have either denied requests or are reluctantly experimenting.
    Publishers are wise to be nervous. Owners of e-readers are exactly the customers they need: book-lovers with money—neither the devices nor broadband connections come cheap. If these wonderful people switch to borrowing e-books instead of buying them, what then?
    Electronic borrowing is awfully convenient. Unlike printed books, which must be checked out and returned to a physical library miles from where you live, book files can be downloaded at home. Digital library catalogues are often browsed at night, from a comfortable sofa. The files disappear from the device when they are due.
    Awkwardly for publishers, buying an e-book costs more than renting one but offers little extra value. You cannot resell it, lend it to a friend or bum it to stay warm. Owning a book is useful if you want to savour(品尝)it repeatedly, but who reads "Fifty Shades of Grey" twice?
    E-lending is not simple, however. There are lots of different and often incompatible e-book formats, devices and licences. Most libraries use a company called OverDrive, a global distributor that secures rights from publishers and provides e-books and audio files in every format. Yet publishers and libraries are worried by OverDrive’s market dominance, as the company can increasingly dictate fees and conditions.
    Library boosters argue that book borrowers are also book buyers, and that libraries are vital spaces for readers to discover new work. Many were cheered by a recent Pew survey, which found that more than half of Americans with library cards say they prefer to buy their e-books. But the report also noted that few people know that e-books are available at most libraries, and that popular titles often involve long waiting lists, which may be what inspires people to buy.
    So publishers keep adjusting their lending arrangements in search of the right balance. Random House raised its licensing prices earlier this year, and HarperCollins limits libraries to lending its titles 26 times. Hachette is engaged in some secret experiments, and the others are watching with held breath. In Britain the government will soon announce a review of the matter. The story of the library e-book is a nail-biter.
What can be inferred from the first paragraph?
选项 A、Libraries are eager to keep relationship with publishers.
B、Several publishers have sold e-books to most libraries.
C、Libraries care too much about piracy and book sales.
D、Most publishers hesitate to cooperate with libraries.
答案D
解析 推理判断题。本题考查对文章第一段的理解。定位句指出，在六大出版商中，只有兰登书屋和哈珀科林斯出版集团将电子书授权给了大多数图书馆，其他出版商有的表示拒绝，有的则在勉强试探当中，故答案为D)。A)“图书馆急于与出版商保持联系”，第一段开头指出，图书馆与出版商的关系平淡如水而不是急于保持联系，故排除；B)“一些出版商已经将电子书出售给大部分图书馆了”，最后一句已经指出只有两家出版集团将电子书授权给了大多数图书馆，故排除；C)“图书馆太注重盗版和销量了”，注重盗版和销量的是出版商，故排除。
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